News Story not available This story has been published on: 2022-11-01. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site. Democrats saw a surge in new voters in Pennsylvania as midterms near Following a 2-1 vote, a resolution calling for a public hearing to consider a Montclaire Business Development District was approved by the Edwardsville Finance Committee at Thursdays meeting. The district area is bounded on the west by Troy Road, on the north by Hadley Avenue, on the east by Lindenwood Avenue, and on the south by Montclair, which makes up the entirety of the district. Montclaire Center consists of Deals, the Bed Room Store, El Maguey Bar and Grill, Flea Market, Panteras, The Orient, H & R Block, Tot Spot Resale, Great Clips, the Bike Factory, Diamond Nails, and a laundromat. Keith Moran, of Moran Economic Development, approached the committee and said if the district is approved, taxes in the area are able to be increased. This is, ultimately by establishing a business district, it gives you the ability to impose an additional tax at this location, and enter into an agreement with the developer to help reimburse for certain eligible costs, Moran said. The Center qualifies under the Illinois Business District Development and Redevelopment Act. If the plan is approved, the redevelopment plan will repair the deterioration of the cracked pavement in the parking lot, cracked sidewalks, the building facade will be reconstructed and the roof will be repaired as well. Other improvements and reconstruction elements will apply as well. In terms of the redevelopment plan, Moran said there is a budget limit set in place. Within that plan is a budget of about $2.2 million. Thats not to say that you (the city) are giving away $2.2 million; thats just saying thats the maximum your business district plan would allow you to get, he said. If the public hearing is approved, it will take place at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016 at City Hall in the Council Chambers. The project in its entirety will be reviewed during the hearing and all comments received from the public will be reported back to the Finance Committee if moved forward will also approach the Administrative and Community Service Committee prior to City Council. The redevelopment plan has approached city committees in the past, and alderman Janet Stack said although shes been involved with the process so far, her opinion on the matter hasnt changed. This has been brought before us before and my feeling about it really hasnt changed. Im not in favor of business district taxes. Im not in favor of some of the things developers are asking for of the citizens, and I understand its not a TIF (Tax Increment Finance), thats its only those that use that area, but I still feel that its not appropriate, Stack said. Prior to the public hearing, Will Krause said its detrimental for the public to be aware of what is going on with the development and input is required. I think if you want public comment, I think its best to have notices at the facility where this is going to be affected, he said. I want to hear from more people on this. Otherwise my general stance on it hasnt changed either. The majority of the people in the neighborhood that is immediately surrounding it I have spoken to and they have not been in favor of it. Thats where I stand on it. I dont have an issue with having a public hearing on it if we make every best effort to reach out to the public. City Administrator Tim Harr said there is a requirement involved when spreading the word to the public about the hearing. Theres certainly the legal requirement that we must follow. Now can we go above and beyond that? Sure we can. We could do Facebook; we could do a website, Harr said. The motion passed with a 2-1 vote; Krause and alderman Art Risavy were in favor; alderman Janet Stack was not in favor. The motion also passed through ACS and will be discussed at City Council on Tuesday. If approved, the public hearing will be open to all who wish to attend. A man who admitted tazing a woman repeatedly at her Maryville home three years ago was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison. John P. Hawkins, 62, had pleaded guilty in June to one count of aggravated kidnapping and one count of attempted aggravated criminal sexual abuse. Circuit Judge Richard Tognarelli sentenced Hawkins, who since the attack has been living near Carbondale, to 20 years on the kidnapping charge and five years on the aggravated criminal sexual abuse charge. But because the plea agreement called for them to run concurrently - and because he is required to serve 85 percent of the 20-year sentence - Hawkins will only be spending 17 years behind bars. At one point in the hearing, prosecutor Kathleen Nolan described the attack as serious and terrifying, one that was both brutal and calculated in nature. Maryville Police Officer Keith Hopke testified that Hawkins and the woman had known each other casually for a few years but had never dated, despite Hawkins repeated attempts to escalate things. While they had been on somewhat friendly terms, the woman had told him in the past that she was not interested in a relationship, Hopke said. The woman had told investigators that he had followed her into the bathroom, tried to kiss her, and then tazed her on the neck, chin and head. She was treated at Anderson Hospital in Maryville. During a search of his home in Maryville, officers found the box for the stun gun as well as rope and some pictures of her, Hopke said. Attorney Scott Rosenblum said Hawkins hadnt intended to use the stun gun when he brought it over to the victims house. Rather, he simply wanted to kiss her, he said. What transpired instead was an "irrational, spontaneous act and a culmination of unrequited love. He is, for all intents and purposes, a gentle man, Rosenblum told Tognarelli. But he did NOT, on that evening, act in a gentle way. Once he realized he had hurt his friend he immediately apologized. He does have morality, Rosenblum said. He does have a conscience. He asked Tognarelli to impose a six-year sentence, the lowest possible under the plea agreement. Hawkins spoke briefly. He rose from his chair and offered a tearful apology. I deserve whatever punishment that is fair, he said. I am very, very sorry for what I did that night. The victim did not attend the hearing. In a Victim Impact Statement read by Nolan, she said the sight of certain things brings the memories of that night rushing back: a car that resembles Hawkins car, a bald head that resembles Hawkins. This is our home, she wrote. This is supposed to be a safe place. The attack, she said, has left her with significant physical and emotional harm. Tognarelli repeated those words moments before delivering the sentence. Lives were changed, he said, and certainly not for the better. The judge said it was inexplicable that Hawkins would bring a stun gun to someones home and taze them repeatedly. Hawkins had been out on bond until the hearing. As the hearing drew to a close, a couple of deputies approached the defense table and cuffed his hands behind his back. He was sent back to the Madison County Jail where he will be transported to an Illinois Department of Corrections facility soon. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin James Randall (The Jakarta Post) Tangerang Mon, October 31, 2016 In a time when technology means we are more connected than ever, some youths have never felt so isolated. The Oct. 20 attack on Tangerang police officers demonstrates the need for the authorities to not only grapple with violent acts of terror but also to better recognize their underlying causes. (Read also: Tangerang knife attack linked to Aman Abdurrahman: Police) Already the police are looking at better arming personnel on the streets, and politicians at deploying soldiers and elevating this from a criminal problem to an armed conflict, all from one young man armed with a machete. Meanwhile, friends, former classmates and relatives are left asking the impossible questions and feeling the pain that every one of these incidents leaves in its wake. One friend and classmate said he didnt believe Sultan to be the person in the news and didnt recognize him to be the same person he was three years ago. I never imagined that he would transform from a Pencak Silat maniac into a criminal. I never thought he would change from an ISIS sympathizer to an ISIS executioner. Contrary to police statements, his friends assert he hadnt yet been radicalized in 2013 and they arent sure he ever contacted Jemaah Islamiyah. He was so good at martial arts, especially pencak silat, a senior classmate said. But since 2015, he became so sympathetic to ISIS, so he ran away to a madrasah in Ciamis. When his family tried to take him away from it, he ran away. When they got him back, he was too deeply influenced already. It was around this time he met convicted terrorist Aman Abdulrahman, and afterwards changed his Facebook profile name to Abu Sulaiman, and his profile picture to that of ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. Despite this, some claimed this fascination with ISIS wasnt his only motive for attacking policemen: He had two elder brothers who are both policemen. While some commentators have already tried to blame this incident simply on radical online content and preachers corrupting innocent youth, this approach is likely obsolete and counterproductive. According to professor Olivier Roy, from the European University Institute in Italy who specializes in studying violent extremism, radicalization isnt simply indoctrination over the Internet, but is usually sought out by teens with personal motivations. In a November 2015 lecture titled What is the driving force behind jihadist terrorism? A scientific perspective on the causes/circumstances of joining the scene, Roy proposed, In a word, their radicalization is not the consequence of a long-term maturation either in a political movement [Palestine, extreme left, extreme right] or in an Islamic environment. It is, on the contrary, a relatively sudden individual jumping into violence, often after trying something else [army enlistment]. Western academics are now abandoning disproven and outdated theories of radicalization that focus on theology and communities, looking at individuals as criminals. According to American scholars such as John Horgan, director of the International Center for the Study of Terrorism at Pennsylvania State University, and professor Arun Kundnani of terrorism studies at John Jay College, New York, the motive for committing acts of terror has little to do with holding radical views. Terrorism is not motivated by radical ideas, rather by personal fantasies and ambitions. Individual motivation and ideology is as important as political context and strategy. Personal fantasy, seeking adventure, camaraderie, purpose, identity these lures can be very powerful, especially when you don't necessarily have a lot else going on in your life, but terrorists rarely talk about them," Horgan explained in an interview with Rolling Stone. It might be easier to blame malevolent forces corrupting young Indonesian minds, but studies show that more often than not they are the ones seeking out radical content that fits with their own ideas and desires. While we might never really understand what finally pushed young Sultan Aziansyah to seek out ISIS propaganda and attack policemen, whether it was a personal grievance with his brothers, the need for a purpose and a cause, or even attention seeking, the least we can do is not belittle what youths are going through today and what causes them to turn to crime. We must also not give terrorists any more attention than they deserve and treat them as humans, as criminals in need of rehabilitation. As Sultans classmate said, I will remember and miss him as a friend, and not a member of a terrorist group. *** James Abdulmalik Randall is a writer and media spokesperson for IREA, an Islamic research and advocacy organisation based in Melbourne, Australia. A Swinburne graduate, he is currently studying media studies with Curtin University and writing a book on the experience of converts to Islam in Australia. --------------- We are looking for information, opinions, and in-depth analysis from experts or scholars in a variety of fields. We choose articles based on facts or opinions about general news, as well as quality analysis and commentary about Indonesia or international events. Send your piece to community@jakpost.com. Click here for more information. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 More than 11,000 visitors flocked to the two-day diecast expo held since Saturday in Balai Kartini in South Jakarta. Held annually since two years ago, the 2016 Indonesia Diecast Expo featured new activities to attract more visitors, like a playground area and a diecast racing competition for children, in addition to its regular diecast auction for which items were donated by collectors. (Read also: Dads and kids flock to toy fair) On the first day, three custom diecast models reportedly sold for Rp 12.7 million (US$973), while an official Mini Cooper event car, scale 1:64 of series number 01, broke the record by being auctioned for Rp 8.5 million. Last year the highest price paid for one diecast model at that scale was Rp 7.2 million. In total, Rp 3 billion in transactions were made during the expo. During the opening ceremony, the expo also launched a diecast magazine that is said to be the first and only one in the country. "This magazine aims to accommodate the needs of diecast world that has been growing across Indonesia for some time," said the magazine's editor in chief, Feldani Effendi. (fmn/kes) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, October 29 2016 A transportation agency official, 24-year-old Wardi Dadiyanto, has been arrested by Koja Police in North Jakarta after threatening a truck driver with an airsoft gun. Koja Police chief Comr. Supriyanto said on Friday Wardi was apprehended as he had no authority to use the replica weapon. Supriyanto said the incident began when Wardi was on duty on Jl. Palmen in Koja. He stopped and attempted to ticket a truck driven by 41-year-old Irwansyah. Instead of handing over the vehicle documents, Irwansyah tried to keep going, Supriyanto said, as quoted by tribunnews.com. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) East Manggarai Sat, October 29 2016 Celebrating the 88th anniversary of Youth Pledge Day on Oct. 28, students with SMPK Waemokel Catholic junior high school pledged they would fight illegal drugs. The schools student organization chairman Yohanes Paskalis Jaik said as a generation that will inherit the nation in the coming years, the students must dare to reject illegal drugs. In order to do that, he said students must avoid negative lifestyles and never try to consume illegal drugs. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Julie Pace and Ken Thomas (Associated Press) Wilton Manors, Fla. Mon, October 31, 2016 Hillary Clinton vowed Sunday that she would not be "knocked off course" in the election's final days, as she sought to push past a new FBI email inquiry in a sexting probe that delivered a late jolt to her race against Republican Donald Trump. "I'm not stopping now, we're just getting warmed up," Clinton declared during a packed rally with gay and lesbian supporters in battleground Florida. "We're not going to be distracted, no matter what our opponents throw at us." Trump campaigned in Las Vegas at a casino owned by billionaire GOP megadonor Sheldon Adelson and accused the Justice Department, without offering evidence, of trying to protect Clinton following the FBI's discovery of new emails that could be related to its investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server. "Hillary has nobody but herself to blame for her mounting legal problems," Trump said during a rally. Clinton's advisers and fellow Democrats pressured FBI Director James Comey anew to release more details about the emails, including whether Comey had even reviewed them himself. The message was aimed at gathering more information about what the bureau is seeking from a computer that appears to belong to disgraced former New York Rep. Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of Huma Abedin, one of Clinton's closest advisers. Tim Kaine, Clinton's running mate, said Comey owed it to the public to be more forthcoming about the emails under review by the FBI with only nine days remaining before the Nov. 8 election. Calling Comey's announcement "extremely puzzling," Kaine said that if Comey "hasn't seen the emails, I mean they need to make that completely plain." Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta, said Comey's handling of the matter was "inappropriate." Clinton made unannounced stops Sunday in Florida at an early voting location, a Miami brunch spot and a soul food restaurant. She also addressed a predominantly black church, where she spoke of overcoming disappointments. "Scripture tells us to rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character," she said. "And character produces hope." Clinton made no direct mention of the new FBI investigation, which has created anxiety among Democrats. But while she criticized the FBI for a lack of transparency during a campaign appearance on Saturday, she tried to shift her attention back to Trump on Sunday, casting him as a selfish billionaire with a striking lack of empathy. Speaking to LGBT supporters in Wilton Manors, she seized on a Washington Post report about Trump appearing at a fundraiser for children with HIV and pretending to be a donor, though he never gave money to the charity. "It's always Donald Trump first and everyone else last," she said. Comey's actions Friday have roiled the White House race, energizing Trump as polls had showed him sliding and unnerving Democrats worried about the presidency and down-ballot congressional races. In a letter to Congress on Friday, Comey said the FBI had recently come upon new emails while pursuing an unrelated case and was reviewing whether they were classified. The FBI is looking into whether there was classified information on a device belonging to Weiner. Federal authorities in New York and North Carolina are investigating online communications between Weiner and a 15-year-old girl. The developments prompted Trump to quip to his Las Vegas supporters, "We never thought we were going to say 'thank you' to Anthony Weiner," he said. A law enforcement official said Sunday that FBI investigators in the Weiner sexting probe knew for weeks about the existence of newly discovered emails that might be relevant to the Clinton email investigation. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter by name and spoke on condition of anonymity. Comey said he was briefed Thursday about that development and told Congress on Friday that investigators had found the emails. A second law enforcement official also said the FBI was aware for a period of time about the emails before Comey was briefed, but the second official wasn't more specific. Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said Comey was in "an impossible spot" when he acknowledged the FBI was looking into the messages. "Had he sat on the information, one can argue that he also would be interfering in the election," by failing to disclose the review, Conway said. The controversy over Clinton's email practices while she served as secretary of state has dogged her for more than a year. Late Saturday, four senior Democratic senators urged the Justice Department and the FBI to provide more detailed information by Monday about what investigative steps are being taken, the number of emails involved and what is being done to determine how many of the emails are duplicative of those already reviewed by the FBI. The letter went to Comey and Attorney General Loretta Lynch from Sens. Ben Cardin of Maryland, Tom Carper of Delaware, Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Dianne Feinstein of California. Kaine appeared on ABC's "This Week," Podesta and Conway were on CNN's "State of the Union." __ Thomas reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin in Las Vegas, and Eric Tucker and Kevin Freking in Washington contributed to this report. __ Follow Ken Thomas at http://twitter.com/KThomasDC and Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC (**) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Colleen Barry, Vanessa Gera, and Gregorio Borgia (Associated Press) Norcia, Italy Mon, October 31, 2016 The third powerful earthquake to hit Italy in two months spared human life Sunday but struck at the nation's identity, destroying a Benedictine cathedral, a medieval tower and other beloved landmarks that had survived the earlier jolts across a mountainous region of small historic towns. Lost or severely damaged in the shaking were ancient Roman walls, Gothic and Baroque churches and centuries-old paintings crushed beneath tons of brick, sandstone and marble. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi said the nation's "soul is disturbed" by the series of quakes, starting with the deadly Aug. 24 event that killed nearly 300 people, two back-to-back temblors on Oct. 26, and the biggest of them all, a 6.6-magnitude quake that shook people out of bed Sunday morning. It was the strongest quake to hit Italy in 36 years. There were no reports of fatalities a fact attributed to the evacuation of sensitive areas and fragile city centers. Some 3,600 people had been moved to shelters, hotels and other temporary accommodations after last week's quakes. Many who stayed behind were sleeping in campers or other vehicles, out of harm's way. Renzi vowed to rebuild houses, churches and business, saying, "a piece of Italian identity is at stake at this moment." "Feeling the earth collapse beneath your feet is not a metaphorical expression but is what happened this morning, and half of Italy felt this," Renzi said. The quake struck another painful blow to the rich artistic heritage of villages that dot the Apennine Mountains. The worst damage was reported in Norcia, a town in Umbria closest to the epicenter. Two churches were destroyed the 14th century Basilica of St. Benedict, built on the traditional birthplace of St. Benedict, founder of the Benedictine monastic order; and the Cathedral of St. Mary Argentea, known for its 15th century frescoes. Only the cracked facades were still standing, with most of the structures disintegrating into piles of rubble and dust. Television images showed nuns rushing into the main piazza as the bell tower appeared on the verge of collapse. Later, nuns and monks knelt in prayer in the main piazza. A firefighter appealed to a priest to help keep residents calm in an effort to prevent them from looking for loved ones. When the quake stuck, nuns from the Saint Mary of Peace monastery in Norcia were praying and singing hymns. The shaking caused their building to collapse and badly damaged their sleeping quarters. Later, firefighters escorted them back inside to retrieve holy books. Then an aftershock hit. "But we had courage, because we were in our house and the Lord protects us," one nun told The Associated Press. Large sections of Norcia's ancient Roman city walls which suffered damage and cracks in the previous quakes crumbled, along with towers. Amatrice, the town that bore the brunt of destruction on Aug. 24, sustained blows to treasures that had withstood the quakes of the past weeks. The community's medieval bell tower stood tall amid the rubble after the August quake, becoming a symbol of hope and resilience for the stricken population. During a visit to the quake zone earlier this month, the pope prayed alone amid the rubble, the brick tower still standing in the background. But the latest shaking partially collapsed it. The 15th century Church of Sant'Agostino also fell down. "The monster is still there," Amatrice Mayor Sergio Pirozzi told Sky TG24. The quake was felt as far north as Salzburg, Austria, and all the way down the Italian peninsula to the Puglia region, the heel of the boot. In Rome, some 150 kilometers (95 miles) away, people rushed into the streets in pajamas. The basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, a site of Christian worship in Rome since the 4th century, had to be closed for inspections after sustaining cracks and damage to some molding. There were also cracks in the cupola of Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza church in Rome, a baroque masterpiece by Francesco Borromini, an architectural giant of the 17th century. The quake forced the temporary closure of some of Rome's most important tourist sites, including the presidential palace, so authorities could check for damage. The crowds in St. Peter's Square interrupted Pope Francis with applause when he mentioned the quake during his weekly Sunday blessing. "I'm praying for the injured and the families who have suffered the most damage, as well as for rescue and first aid workers," he said. ANSA reported that the quake damaged the church of St. Joseph in Jesi, a town encircled by medieval walls southwest of the coastal city of Ancona. The roof caved in partially and cracks appeared near the altar. In Tolentino, there was visible damage to the Cathedral of San Catervo and the Basilica of St. Nicolas, which contains artwork and architectural elements dating from the 14th to the 17th centuries. With a preliminary magnitude of 6.6, it was the strongest earthquake since a 6.9 temblor near Naples killed some 3,000 people on Nov. 23, 1980. Some 20 people suffered mostly minor injuries. Authorities responded with helicopters to help the injured and monitor collapses, as many roads were blocked by landslides. The Salaria highway, one of the main highways in the region, was closed at certain points. Some local rail lines in Umbria and Le Marche were also closed as a precaution. Seismologists said the shaking came from a series of faults in the Apennines, and they could not rule out more, possibly stronger quakes in the near future. "It is normal for the Apennines," said the president of Italy's National Institute for Geophysics and Vulcanology, Carlo Doglioni. He cited a similar sequence of three events within a period of months in 1703 in the region. Natural law dictates that after such an event there will be more quakes, "which means we can expect some 5 magnitude quakes and many of magnitude 4," Doglioni said. Already on Sunday, more than 200 other seismic events were recorded by the institute, including 15 temblors between magnitude 4 and 5. ___ Barry reported from Milan and Gera from Warsaw, Poland. (**) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan, North Sumatra Mon, October 31, 2016 Immigration officers arrested eight refugees for allegedly violating immigration rules during an operation in several community houses in Medan, North Sumatra, early on Friday. The Law and Human Rights Ministrys North Sumatra immigration office head, Yudi Kurniadi, said seven refugees were arrested for allegedly violating immigration rules, which prohibited them from leaving their community houses without permission at night. Meanwhile, one refugee was apprehended for allegedly possessing a sharp weapon. Yudi said the eight refugees were from Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and Somalia. They were arrested in three different community houses, namely My Mansion, Wisma Rajawali and Wisma Rizki. Five refugees are being detained at the Polonia immigration office, while three others are at the Medan immigration office, he went on. We detained them as sanctions for violations they committed. This aims to create a deterrent effect, Yudi told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the operation on Friday. He said immigration officers conducted the operation as a follow up to complaints from several locals about the behavior of refugees in the city. He acknowledged that Medan was accommodating many refugees waiting for placement in a third country. The number of refugees in Medan has reached 2,046 people, said Yudi, adding that all refugees were placed in 21 community houses, fully covered by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), across Medan. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bambang Muryanto (The Jakarta Post) Yogyakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Leaders of Ahmadiyah Muslim communities from Indonesia and Malaysia are complaining about the absence of state protection for their followers in the two countries. Speaking at the 2016 International Peace Symposium organized by the School of Social Sciences and Humanities of the State Islamic University (UIN) Sunan Kalijaga in Yogyakarta on Saturday, the leaders revealed how their followers were being oppressed in the two neighboring countries. Jamaah Ahmadiyah Indonesias (JAI) ulema Mirajuddin Sahid asked the government to obey the Constitution and protect the rights of the Ahmadis in the country to worship according to their faith. Up to the present time the government has not been serious about protecting Ahmadis, Mirajuddin told The Jakarta Post after speaking in the seminar, which ran smoothly despite recent bans and disruptions by groups intolerant of seminars discussing sensitive political and religious issues. He said intolerant acts against the Ahmadis, who are considered heretics, were still being committed in 12 different locations across Indonesia, mostly in West Java. He added the practices ranged from the closing of the mosques to subdistrict officers who refused to issue ID cards for Ahmadis. The worst, he said, was what happened to 119 Ahmadi families in West Nusa Tenggara who years ago had been evicted from their homes and are still forced to take shelter in the Wisma Transito building in Mataram. They have been staying there for the last 10 years and the government still does nothing about it, he said. Another speaker at the symposium, the Malaysian Ahmadiyah Muslim communitys leader, Maulana Ainul Yaqeen, said oppression also prevailed against Ahmadis in Malaysia. He said the Malaysian Ahmadis, also known as the Qadiani community, have been labelled infidels. In 1953 there was an edict from the king saying that Ahmadiyah was outside of Islam, said Maulana who was once sent to prison for preaching his faith. Wahid Institute senior researcher Ahmad Suaedy said that historically oppression in Indonesia against minority groups like Ahmadiyah had not been as serious as what has been happening in the last 15 years. He blamed the situation on how the leadership within Islam in the country changed from being tolerant to intolerant. He suggested the government implement a cultural citizenship approach by recognizing, respecting and protecting minority groups. Meanwhile, Siti Ruhaini Dzuhayatin, a member of the human rights commission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), said that intolerance had become a complicated problem in countries where people practiced Islam, like Indonesia. She said that from a human rights perspective the right to adhere to a religion was an absolute right that no one, including the state, could take away. The state has no right to decide whether a religion is right or wrong. Its duty is to respect and protect it, said Siti, who is also a lecturer at the UIN Sunan Kalijaga. Unfortunately, she said, Law No. 1/1965 on religious blasphemy was still effective in Indonesia. Within such a framework, a difference of opinion over religion could be considered blasphemy and that was a crime. Differences in religions have to be settled in civilized ways and no intervention from the state is allowed, she said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Like other candidates running in next years gubernatorial election, incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama has started his campaign with blusukan (impromptu visits) to residential areas, a legacy of President Joko Jokowi Widodo in how he approached Jakartans when he led the capital. Ahok on Monday visited residents of Lenteng Agung in Jagakarsa, and Kebagusan in Pasar Minggu, both in South Jakarta. Kebagusan is a subdistrict, where Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri resides. The governor listened to the peoples complaints about flooding in their area. "It's flooding here pak Ahok," a female resident of Lenteng Agung told the governor when he visited her village. Ahok asked the residents how severe the flooding was that affected their houses. The flooding has moved from North Jakarta to South Jakarta, he said, adding that the occupation of rivers and riverbanks by many residents was contributing to the annual disaster. Ahok said there are a lot of houses in South Jakarta built too near rivers. He promised to develop a retention basin in the area to prevent flooding. "If we can develop a retention basin, we don't have to evict [the residents of the offending] houses. The residents can raise gold fish or catfish there [in the basin]," Ahok said. Unlike Jokowi, blusukan is not Ahoks style in dealing with people. However, he argued that during the election campaign, blusukan was necessary to seek feedback from the people about his accomplishments as governor in the last two years. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Shin Hyon-hee (The Korea Herald/ANN) Seoul Mon, October 31, 2016 South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Sunday accepted the resignations of the chief of staff, top political and policy coordination secretaries and some of her longest-serving aides in a bid to contain the fallout from an unbridled influence-peddling scandal pivoting around her old friend. Yet political and public pressure has only continued to mount on the commander in chief, with opposition and even ruling party lawmakers calling for a launch of a neutral cabinet to take over some key executive duties from Cheong Wa Dae. Park appointed Choi Jai-kyung, a lawyer who served as a former deputy minister for planning and coordination at the justice ministry and head of the Supreme Prosecutors Offices central investigation unit, to be the new senior secretary for civil affairs, replacing Woo Byung-woo. Bae Sung-rye, a former National Assembly spokesperson and television journalist, was tapped to succeed Kim Sung-woo as the top press secretary. However, the president has yet to decide on the replacements of Chief of Staff Lee Won-jong, senior secretary for policy coordination Ahn Chong-bum and senior secretary for political affairs Kim Jae-won, Cheong Wa Dae (executive office and official residence of the South Korean head of state) spokesperson Jung Youn-kuk told reporters. Park has also accepted the resignations tendered by her three closest aides -- Jeong Ho-seong, Lee Jae-man and Ahn Bong-geun -- who have been working for her for nearly two decades. The announcement came a day after all the 10 chief presidential secretaries offered to step down in the aftermath of the scandal. Chief of Staff Lee Won-jong submitted his resignation on Wednesday. Woo and Ahn Chong-bum are suspected of assisting Choi to raise over US$70 million in slush funds from major conglomerates, while the three longest-serving assistants have allegedly been playing a bridging role between the president and Choi. With the scandal continuing to unravel and Parks leadership in free fall, the ruling and opposition parties ratcheted up calls for a more sweeping personnel overhaul to forestall any potential government vacuum. Moreover, on Sunday, the ruling Saenuri Party convened an emergency meeting of senior members and agreed to recommend to the president to form a neutral cabinet while reaffirming its demand for an across-the-board shake-up of Cheong Wa Dae staff. We urge the president to set up a neutral cabinet that could be approved by the ruling and opposition parties and trusted by the people, Saenuri spokesman Rep. Kim Sung-won told reporters, adding the prosecution should conduct a thorough probe into the scandal, given the return home of the disgraced Choi. The concept has been gaining traction as leading opposition figures relay their proposals, including the main opposition Minjoo Party of Koreas previous head Moon Jae-in and minor opposition Peoples Partys Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo. Senior ruling party members, such as former Saenuri Chairman Rep. Kim Moo-sung and Gyeonggi Province Governor Nam Kyung-pil, have also expressed support for the move. Other lawmakers and experts have floated a 'premier with responsibilities' scheme intended to split the presidents administrative powers by ensuring the prime ministers actual exercise of his right to nominate cabinet members and recommend their dismissal as enshrined in the constitution. On the campaign trail in 2012, Park said she would empower the premiership as an election pledge. However, she has given little authority to her prime ministers throughout her nearly four years in office, especially in personnel affairs. Earlier in the day, former Gyeonggi governor Sohn Hak-kyu urged Park to designate a new premier and the rival parties to forge a coalition. Ahn, for his part, called on the president to also hand over her diplomatic authority to a prime minister approved by the assembly. Minjoo Party Rep. Min Byung-doo has offered to launch a campaign to collect 10 million signatures calling for the establishment of a neutral cabinet, legislative action for prosecution reform and the minimization of presidential power until the scandal is cleared. Even if the president would not make the request, the National Assembly ought to agree on a prime ministerial candidate and demand her nomination, Sohn said at an event to celebrate his new book in Gangjin County, South Jeolla Province. However, the plan poses challenges, given persistent strife within the parliament and a seemingly limited pool of candidates who could win bipartisan endorsement. It could be a more time-consuming process than other options due to the scale of the entailed reshuffle and parliamentary and administrative tasks to follow. Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn also cast doubts over the idea during last weeks parliamentary session, saying, It will likely result in a mere war of words, with no progress in state management. Among the names being mentioned for the new premiership or head cabinet post are Sohn, former Minjoo Party interim chief Rep. Kim Chong-in, former prime minister Kim Hwang-sik and former Gyeonggi Province governor and lawmaker Rhee In-je. News reports suggested the Saenuri leadership recommended Kim Chong-in and Sohn as promising premier nominees during a meeting with Park on Friday and already voiced Kims interest in the role. The party denied the reports as groundless. This article appeared on The Korea Herald newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Theresia Sufa (The Jakarta Post) Bogor, West Java Mon, October 31, 2016 Botani Square shopping mall in Bogor, West Java, has received an award in the category of Indonesias best Muslim tourist-friendly shopping malls this year from the Culture and Tourism Ministry. Located on Jl.Raya Pajajaran, Bogor, Botani Square is recognized for providing prayer facilities and restaurants only serving halal foods. Botani Square general manager Rosalia HS said it was committed to prioritizing hospitality in its services as it was key to attracting tourists. All employees and tenants must be polite and friendly toward visitors, she went on. Since it was established 10 years ago, we strive to provide comfortable facilities for our visitors, especially Muslim tourists, by providing prayer rooms inside the mall. We also built a mosque in the Botani Square complex because we are aware that we operate in a majority Muslim population, Rosalia told The Jakarta Post of the award presented on Oct.7. On weekdays, Botani Square welcomes around 28,000 visitors every day while on weekends (Saturday-Sunday), it has about 40,000 visitors. The number of visitors may even grow up to 50,000 during the Ramadhan fasting month. Bogor Culture and Tourism Agency head Sahlan Rasyidi said it was expected that with the award, Botani Square could further improve its services and facilities. I hope Botani Square also can maintain its advancement in providing halal foods for its visitors ahead of the selection process for the World Halal Tourism competition in December, he said. (ebf) A place to gather -- Visitors meet at a restaurant offering halal food at Botani Square shopping mall in Bogor, West Java, on Oct.14. The Culture and Tourism Ministry named Botani Square Indonesia's best Muslim tourist-friendly shopping mall for 2016. (JP/Theresia Sufa) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 A candidate for Jakarta governor, Anies Baswedan, visited Jagakarsa in South Jakarta and received complaints about frequent flooding in the area from the residents. Sulastri, a resident, said Jagakarsa never used to flood, but now it happened frequently, ever since the development of housing complexes by developers around her neighborhood. Anies said the problem was the lack of water absorption areas. Many violate building regulations. We have to enforce the regulation. South Jakarta is an absorption area. Each place has to be built with absorption wells -- more so in developers housing clusters, he said during a talk show on Bens Radio on Sunday as quoted by kompas.com. Anies said the dwindling numbers of absorption areas caused high run-off and rainwater went straight into drains, causing floods in other areas. He said the administration should be able to use materials for roads that could absorb water more. Flooding is not a natural disaster. It is about water management, he said. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Hans Nicholas Jong (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31 2016 In her crusade to protect the country from promiscuity and homosexuality, which she considers a disease, Social Affairs Minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa has suggested that university dorms be made doorless to prevent college students from engaging in sex. Not only men and women who are doing it [sex]. The thing that is equally dangerous is men with men and women with women, she said in Semarang, Central Java, as quoted by Antara on Saturday. Khofifah said removing the doors would make it easier to monitor salacious activities in university dorms. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Surabaya Mon, October 31 2016 SURABAYA: The government and central bank have expressed their disappointment over the stance of credit rating agency Standard & Poors (S&P), which has maintained its reluctance to grant Indonesia an investment grade rating in the immediate future, ducking behind additional concerns on bad debts. Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo said the banking industry had managed to keep the non-performing loan (NPL) ratio 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 the objective. We will clarify when we meet them, he said on Friday in Surabaya, East Java. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nurul Fitri Ramadhani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31 2016 With lawmakers having only around six or seven months to pass the election bill into law, questions have been raised over their ability to produce a quality law that could ensure the legitimacy of the 2019 election results. The country will for the first time hold concurrent presidential and legislative elections in 2019, as mandated by the Constitutional Court. The courts ruling, issued a few months before the 2014 legislative elections, has forced the government and the House of Representatives to revise three separate election-related laws the 2008 Presidential Election Law, the 2011 Legislative Law and the 2011 Election Organizers Law and merge them into one. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Panca Nugraha (The Jakarta Post) Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara Mon, October 31, 2016 Around 400 female weavers in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) and West Sumatra are set to receive financial literacy training. Provided by Malaysian lender Maybank Group, through its corporate social responsibility program, Maybank Foundation, the Maybank Women Eco Weaver aims to empower the economy of local people, especially communities of female weavers. Maybank Indonesias corporate communication and branding division head, Esti Nugraheni, said Maybank Women Eco Weavers was scheduled to be launched in Lombok, NTB, on Nov.2. This is a program to conserve traditional hand-woven textiles, as part of ASEAN cultural heritage, which will be conducted by Maybank through women empowerment activities to help them achieving their economic independence and to create financial inclusion among female weavers in countries across ASEAN, she told The Jakarta Post on Friday. She further said in Indonesia, the program would be centered in four areas, namely Central and East Lombok regencies in NTB and Sawahlunto and Tanah Datar regencies in West Nusa Tenggara. In this program, Maybank will hold training activities periodically for 400 female weavers in those four regencies for three years. Among training materials included hand-weaving techniques, natural dyeing processes, marketing and promotion skills and financial literacy, said Esti. Maybank Group chairman Tan Sr Dato' Megat, accompanied by Maybank Indonesia president director and commissioner Umar Juoro, will officially launch the Maybank Women Eco Weavers program in Lombok on Wednesday. The NTB governor [M.Zainul Majdi] and Womens Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry officials will attend the launch ceremony, said Esti. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Stevie Emilia (The Jakarta Post) Frankfurt Mon, October 31 2016 For kids: The Indonesian series of bilingual books for kids was bought by a Chinese publisher. Indonesia may be marking another success at the Frankfurt Book Fair this year, but its presence next year is hanging in thin air. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 The government is considering inviting foreign investors to operate Komodo Airport, in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara. Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said the government was currently assessing whether state-owned airport operator Angkasa Pura I, or a foreign investor, would operate Komodo Airport. "There are two options. Either Angkasa Pura I will operate the airport or a foreign investor. We will examine the profitability," he said as quoted by kompas.com during an inspection of Komodo Airport, Labuan Bajo, on Sunday. Budi said the decision on who operated the airport would consider the number of passengers and the operational costs. However, based on the negative investment list, a foreign investor would only be allowed to own 49 percent of the airport, while Angkasa Pura I would own 51 percent, he noted. The Transportation Ministry, through its Airport Operator Unit, currently operates Komodo Airport, along with seven other Indonesian airports, which burdens the state budget. Therefore, the government is considering handing over airport operations to Angkasa Pura I and Angkasa Pura II. The seven airports are Komodo Airport, Temindung Airport in Samarinda, Juwata Airport in Tarakan, Kalimarau Airport in Berau, Radin Inten Airport in Lampung, Sentani Airport in Jayapura, and Hang Nadim Airport in Batam. (ags) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31 2016 State-run oil and gas producer Pertamina says it has made preparations for the deployment of additional vehicles and crews to anticipate a week-long strike by tanker truck drivers planned to begin on Tuesday. We have more crews and tanker trucks than the [protesting] workers claim to control, Pertamina spokesperson Wianda Pusponegoro told The Jakarta Post on Sunday. She assured that Pertamina had put in place guarantees that the fuel distribution in Greater Jakarta and neighboring areas would remain normal. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Jusuf Wanandi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31 2016 It was at an International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) general meeting in Brighton that I first met Des Ball and some other friends from Australia. We had a very interesting conversation about East and Southeast Asia. He was a giant of a man, but very friendly. He was a renowned scholar on the strategic balance in the Cold War and both of us became active on the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP) after it was set up in 1994. In the wake of the Cold War, he got more interested in regional security issues instead of global strategic ones and he became my real partner to discuss them. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 In response to criticism by a rival candidate in next years Jakarta election, incumbent Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama said the city had no need for education assistance in the form of the Indonesia Smart Card (KIP), as students in the capital already had the Jakarta Smart Card (KJP). "Ethically, you cannot claim two kinds of [similar] assistance," Ahok said in Kebagusan, South Jakarta, on Monday, adding that through the KJP each student from low-income families received between Rp 200,000 (US$15.32) to Rp 670,000 per month. Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Anies Baswedan earlier criticized Ahok for rejecting the central governments KIP support amounting to between Rp 750,000 ($57) and Rp 1 million per student when Anies was still the national minister of culture and education. (Read also: Anies, Agus not ready to challenge Ahok in election, analyst says} Ahok countered that Anies had no data on KJP recipients, and added he believed it was unfair for KJP holders to also receive KIP support. He said his administration had allocated Rp 18 million per year for each KJP holder accepted at state-owned universities. Parents could also use the KJP to buy meals for their children, he said. Ahok said it would be unfair if Jakarta students also took the education assistance that could be used for students in other regions. "I have never rejected the KIP [as such], he said. (bbn/bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Amid increasing political tensions prior to the Jakarta gubernatorial election, President Joko Jokowi Widodo is expected to meet Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java, on Monday. The President confirmed his plan to meet with his former political rival after attending an event at the Jakarta Convention Center on Monday. Meanwhile, the head of the Presidential Secretariats information and press bureau, Bey Machmuddin, said the meeting had been initiated by the Presidential Palace. We will welcome the Presidents plan to visit the Garuda Yaksa camp in Bojong Koneng, Hambalang, Bogor, on Monday at 12 a.m., Prabowo said in a press statement, as reported by the Antara news agency. No details have emerged yet about issues to be discussed between Jokowi and Prabowo, who support rival candidate pairs in the Jakarta gubernatorial election to be held in February. Jokowi reportedly supports incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama and his running mate Djarot Saiful Hidayat, while Prabowo has expressed support for Anies Baswedan and his running mate Sandiaga Uno. Political tensions are high in the capital following reports about a massive demonstration against Ahok to take place on Nov. 4. The protesters have demanded that police investigate the Governor over a statement he made in a speech in Thousands Island regency about a verse of the Quran. Jokowi also plans to invite media representatives to the Presidential Palace on Monday evening. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agnes Anya and Haeril Halim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Thousands of police and military personnel are being prepared to confront any possible outbreak of violence when a fresh demonstration, set to involve thousands of Islamic hard-liners from outside Jakarta, hits the streets of the capital on Friday. Jakarta is on high alert after information began to circle online and offline suggesting that extremists from all over the country would flock to the city and demand that authorities prosecute Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama for alleged blasphemy. Indonesian Military (TNI) spokesman Brig. Gen. Wuryanto has confirmed that the TNI plans to deploy around 500 personnel including those from elite branches, such as the Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) and Air Force Special Forces (Paskas), to back up around 7,000 officers deployed by the Jakarta Police. The personnel will also be tasked at providing security assistance in vital areas such as airports, bus terminals and government offices. Wuryanto said the TNI had learned that the upcoming Nov. 4 mass protest by Islamic organizations could escalate into violence and therefore the military had responded to the polices call for backup. Yes, the tension is high because everybody knows about Nov. 4. The military has encouraged Islamic organizations not to send members to Jakarta. We hope they will listen to our advice, Wuryanto told The Jakarta Post on Sunday. National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian acknowledged that the police had been coordinating with the TNI after the National Polices Mobile Brigade (Brimob) issued its highest security level, known as Siaga 1. Many may see these developments as indicative of a high-level security threat in the capital as it is not common to see the TNI being deployed to help deal with civilian demonstrations. In response to the status, roughly 1,000 Brimob personnel from regional police commands have been dispatched to the capital and put on standby, National Police spokesperson Brig. Gen. Agus Rianto said on Sunday. We have deployed personnel from outside Jakarta to assist the Jakarta Police in providing proper services to the public, particularly when the demonstration takes places, Agus told the Post. It is predicted that it will be a large demonstration, he added. The Nov. 4 rally will be the second sizable demonstration against the governor following one on Oct. 10. The protesters, who are mostly Islamic hard-liners, have demanded that the police charge Ahok, who is currently on leave for the Jakarta gubernatorial election campaign, with religious blasphemy after some felt the governor had insulted Islam when Ahok cited a verse from the Quran. Ahok has apologized for the statement, but for the hard-liners this is not enough. Also on Sunday, Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Awi Setiyono clarified that no shoot-on-sight order had been issued with regard to the rally. Dont provoke and make the situation more heated, Awi said, adding that police officers were not allowed to carry firearms when securing rallies. Tito has called on the public not to be easily provoked by the distribution of false information on the internet, especially information suggesting that the rally would descend into chaos. The police have yet to ascertain the full scale of the protest. However, many hard-line Islamic organizations have called on Muslims to take part. Islam Defenders Front (FPI) chairman Habib Rizieq Shihab, for example, has called on all Muslims to take part in the rally on his official website www.habibrizieq.com. Indonesias largest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), has said it will encourage its members to refrain from taking part in the demonstration and will prohibit the use of NU symbols at the rally. NU suspects that the demonstration carries a hidden aim that is bigger than demanding criminal proceedings against Ahok. I am afraid that [the rally] is propelled by a third party whose issues are bigger than just the [Jakarta] election, said NU central board chairman Said Aqil Siradj on Saturday. Tension continues to rise ahead of the highly-anticipated Jakarta gubernatorial race. Incumbent Ahok and his running mate Djarot Saiful Hidayat will compete against two other candidate pairs, namely Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono-Sylviana Murni and Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno. Anies and Sandiaga have said they will not take part in the Nov. 4 demonstration. We are concentrating on winning the gubernatorial race. We wont be taking part in activities that are not related to the election, Anies said. ___________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto said he felt honored by the visit of President Joko Jokowi Widodo to his house in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java, on Monday. Of course, I feel honored by his visit. I think it shows our great national culture that people with sharp differences can still come together, said Prabowo after meeting with Jokowi as reported by kompas.com. Both Prabowo and Jokowi did not disclose what they discussed in the closed door meeting, but many speculated that they discussed the planned massive demonstration on Nov. 4 by a number of Islamic organizations against Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama. Prabowo said during the meeting, he told Jokowi that the Gerindra Party often criticized Jokowi and his ministers because of its function as opposition, but he guaranteed that the interest of the state is first priority. Since the beginning, I believe that as a patriot, he [Jokowi] wants to do his best for the nation. I am also a patriot and I also want the best for the nation. That is why we met, said Prabowo, who ran in the 2014 presidential election. Meanwhile, Jokowi said his visit to Prabowos house was to fulfill the promise he made when he met with Prabowo at the latters house in Kebayoran, South Jakarta, on Oct. 17, 2014, soon after Jokowi was elected as head of state. At that time, I promised pak Prabowo in Kebayoran that I would go to Hambalang. Today, I fulfill my promise, said Jokowi. After their meeting, Prabowo invited Jokowi to ride one of his horses. Both dignitaries wore cowboy caps, while on horseback. Commenting on the planned protest, Prabowo called for a peaceful rally. We have to keep alert for elements that want to break apart the nation, Prabowo added. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Jakarta Police chief. Insp. Gen. M. Iriawan has prohibited police officers from bringing firearms when they guard a rally scheduled to take place on Nov. 4, a police officer has said. Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Corm. Awi Sutiyono denied on Monday that Iriawan had issued a shoot on sight order with regard to the demonstration set to be held by members of Islamic organizations. There was no such an order. National Police chief [Gen. Tito Karnavian] had prohibited officers from bringing firearms while securing the demonstration, Awi said as reported by tribunnews.com on Monday. The police will never prohibit people from demonstrating, but they are called on to abide by the law, he said. We escort demonstrations so that they take place peacefully, said Awi, adding that the organizers of the protest must prevent outsiders, who might have their own agenda, from disrupting the demonstration. The Indonesian Military and the National Police will do their best to secure Jakarta and other cities in Indonesia, Awi said, adding that thousands personnel from the police and the military would be deployed to guard the demonstration. Thousands of people took part in a demonstration on Oct.14, demanding that the police investigate Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, over allegations of committing religious blasphemy. They will make a similar call during the Nov. 4 protest. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31 2016 Gone are the days when election season generated huge revenues for the local printing industry. Elections are no longer a boon for them as gubernatorial candidates redirect their campaigns online to save money and keep the city clean. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Casper Klynge, Trevor Matheson, Johanna Brismar Skoog and Lasse Toft (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31 2016 Indonesia has enjoyed impressive economic growth for over a decade, averaging 6 percent per annum. That growth has been matched by commendable efforts to lift millions of Indonesians out of poverty, while curbing pollution and safeguarding the environment. A critical aspect of Indonesias green growth strategy is to lessen dependence on fossil energy. For more than 40 years, nevertheless, fossil fuel subsidies have been an integral part of Indonesias energy policies. Fossil fuel subsidies are essentially any government action that lowers the cost of fossil fuels. Subsidies, however, never reduce the true cost of energy; they just move it onto the population in a to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Farida Susanty (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Foreign pilots are facing fresh restrictions on flying in Indonesia as the government has issued a regulation banning them from working for more than two years so that airlines must recruit unemployed local pilots. The regulation, issued recently in the form of an official letter from the Transportation Ministrys Directorate General for Air Transportation, became effective on Sept. 23. It made exceptions for foreign pilots with special skills, such as instructors, helicopter pilots and pilots operating in remote areas. We have a lot of unemployed local pilots. There is a large aspect of nationalism in this as it is about utilizing our own human resources, the ministrys airworthiness and operations director Mohammad Alwi said recently, although foreign pilots only account for 10 percent of the total number of pilots working in Indonesia. More than 500 local pilots produced by the countrys 21 flying schools, two of which are operated by the government, can take positions currently filled by foreign pilots, he argued. The schools graduate 100 to 150 fresh pilots every year. As of September this year, 455 foreign pilots had active validation to operate in the country, less than the 513 pilots last year, ministry data shows. Meanwhile, 128 foreign pilots were issued new validations so far this year, compared with 190 pilots last year. The regulation emerged since the number of flights into and out of Indonesia has grown exponentially in recent years, with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) expecting the country to be the sixth largest market for air travel by 2034 with 270 million annual passengers. That has made airlines jack up flight frequencies, which has led to more pilots being required in the business. The Deraya Flying School said competition with foreign pilots was not the only problem that hinders local graduate pilots from joining the workforces of airlines. The core issue, the school said, may be that they had to pay for licenses on their own, which can cost US$3,000 to $4,000 each, on top of the Rp 700 million to Rp 800 million flying school tuition fees. Its difficult for the graduates, Deraya Flying School public relations Eka Ariani Clausen said, referring to the license the pilot has to have to fly certain types of aircraft. The flying schools generally do not equip graduates with the type of rating that allows them to fly aircraft like the Boeing 737, which is widely operated by airlines, as pilots are required to have more flying hours and experience before operating jets. I think we cant just blame foreign pilots. Airlines also need to prioritize having local pilots work for them, Eka said. Edward Sirait, the president director of Lion Air, Indonesias largest private low-cost carrier, said his company recruited foreign pilots because local pilots lacked the specific aircraft rating required. New aircraft are coming in to meet passengers demand. Should we stop the aircraft from being delivered just because there are no qualified pilots? he asked. Lion Air reached a $1 billion deal in 2014 with French turboprop manufacturer ATR for the purchase of 40 ATR 72-600 aircraft to be delivered from 2017 to 2019. Fifty-three of Lion Airs 700 pilots are foreigners, who are all captains, but some also serve as flight instructors. Foreign pilots are more expensive and have more complicated hiring procedure. If we could get local pilots, why would we not hire them? Edward said. The rate of passenger growth on domestic flights in Southeast Asias largest economy reached 16.77 percent, for a total of 52.6 million, from January to August this year, compared with the same period a year ago, according to Central Statistics Agency (BPS) data. International flight passengers grew by 5.66 percent to 9.7 million. The inflow of new aircraft is also massive, but then preparing pilots takes a long time. Meanwhile, the airlines just focus on the target of getting 10 to 15 percent passenger growth, said aviation expert Chappy Hakim, who calls the regulation as temporary because more measures to manage the pilots and their capabilities are required. _______________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Grace D. Amianti, Apriadi Gunawan and Farida Susanty (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Medan Mon, October 31 2016 The government expects a stronger role for regional administrations in expediting development as it aims for at least a quarter of regional budgets to be spent on infrastructure for the first time in history. The 2017 state budget recently approved by lawmakers has set a 22 percent spending increase, up to Rp 387.3 trillion (US$29.6 billion), for infrastructure. The transfer of funds to regions and villages was held level at Rp 764.9 trillion, of which Rp 336 trillion has been specifically earmarked for infrastructure projects. At the same time, the two ministries that are at the forefront of infrastructure development the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry and the Transportation Ministry saw smaller budgets than previously proposed because both the government and the House of Representatives agreed that regional administrations should play bigger roles in infrastructure and have less dependency on the central government. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Taiwanese investors are eyeing to invest in several industries in Indonesia, especially electricity infrastructure, Taiwan Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Wei-Fuu Yang said on Sunday. Yang said a Taiwanese delegation had met with the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) and Indonesian government officials to discuss the investment plan. "We will invest in the electricity sector, in solar power and biogas power plants," he said as quoted by tribunnews.com on Sunday. Aside from investment in the sustainable energy sector, Yang further said, a Taiwanese state-owned enterprise planned to build sugar mills in several cities in Java. "We are working on the study, we must meet with the [Indonesian] government officials to find the right locations. He also said Taiwanese investors were also eyeing to invest in the downstream salt industry. "In addition to a food ingredient, salt can also be manufactured for cosmetics," he said. (ags) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Setara Institute vice chairman Bonar Tigor Naipospos has criticized the Tanjung Balai administration in North Sumatra for reportedly ordering the management of the Tri Ratna Buddhist temple to remove a Buddha Amithaba statue on Oct. 27, in response to complaints from the neighborhoods majority-Muslim residents. "The country cannot bow to radical and intolerant groups. The country has to change its approach by prioritizing citizens rights based on the Constitution. The law shall be enforced," he told The Jakarta Post on Monday, adding that the precedent would impact on the state of tolerance in the country. Bonar believed the Tanjung Balai administration had taken the wrong approach in maintaining stability and security by urging the minority group to succumb to the majority's will. Veryanto Sitohang, founder and advocate of NGO the United North Sumatera Alliance, said the Buddhist congregation in the neighborhood had no other option aside from taking down the statue as the administration told the Buddhist community to remove it to avoid other possible attacks targeting temples. According to Veryanto, following arson attacks on several Buddhist temples in Tanjung Balai on July 27, regional leaders including the Tanjung Balai mayor, Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and Interreligious Harmony Forum (FKUB) had met without the presence of Buddhist community representatives. The meeting reportedly concluded with a consensus that the presence of the Buddha Amithaba statue had been a source of protest among local residents since 2010. Therefore, the mayor followed up by telling the temples management to remove the statue by October, Veryanto said. (dmr) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Haeril Halim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 While the government intensifies its campaign for budget austerity, it has revealed that it has given a luxury retirement house to former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The 700-square-meter mansion inside a business quarter in Mega Kuningan in South Jakarta was handed over last week. The mansion is reportedly equipped with an elevator even though it is only a two-story building. The State Secretariat has not disclosed the price of the house, but according to property websites, the price for a 600-square-meter plot of land in the upscale area in the heart of the city is tagged at around Rp 60 billion (US$4.6 million). Many have criticized the purchase at a time when the government has made cuts in its spending to reduce the budget deficit. Yudhoyono prepared for a comfortable retirement in the final few months of his presidency. Four months before his tenure concluded in October 2014, he signed a new presidential regulation giving former presidents and vice presidents unlimited access to state funds to pay for private residences. A previous regulation set a maximum of Rp 20 billion for private residences for former presidents and vice presidents, but the decree that Yudhoyono signed canceled the price limit to buy retirement property. The new regulations also give a mandate to the government to cover other expenses such as taxes related to the purchase of houses. Dipo Alam, a former Cabinet secretary in the Yudhoyono administration, tried to quell criticisms of Yudhoyono, saying that in June 2014, the former president had to sign the new regulation in order to accommodate demands from former vice president Jusuf Kalla, now back in his former position in the current administration, who at that time wanted to buy an expensive house in Brawijaya, an affluent area of South Jakarta. On Sunday, Democratic Party executive and former minister Syarief Hasan said he was surprised to learn that the public was questioning the governments decision to purchase the house for Yudhoyono. Syarif contends that it is right that former presidents get a retirement house from the state. Syarief confirmed that the price of the house was more than Rp 20 billion but he refused to reveal the exact price, saying that if you want to find a house with that kind of size for Rp 20 billion then you will be able to find it outside Jakarta. The house has been given [to Yudhoyono] as far as I know, but [Yudhoyono] has not moved in because it is not yet fully furnished, Syarief said. Dipo said he could not remember the exact price of the house. He also did not answer when questioned about whether it was President Joko Jokowi Widodo or Yudhoyono who chose the property. There is no problem about the house because it has a strong legal basis, Dipo said. The Indonesia Budget Center (IBC) called on Jokowi to review the 2014 presidential regulation signed by Yudhoyono, adding that Rp 20 billion was more enough to buy a luxury house in Jakarta. Whether a former president can get a house from the state or not is not an issue here because there is a legal basis for it. The only problem is whether there should be price limit for it. The timing is sensitive because, as we know, the government is currently launching a budget efficiency campaign, IBC researcher Roy Salam said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Pertamina says it will ensure sufficient fuel supplies despite a threatened strike by thousands of tanker truck drivers grouped under the Indonesian Port and Transportation Workers Federation (FBTPI). Pertamina spokeswoman Wianda Pusponegoro said the state-owned energy company had prepared a special task force backed by police officers to manage fuel distribution across the country. Fuel distribution will be done as usual. The special task force will also guarantee that enough drivers are available, she told The Jakarta Post on Monday, a day before the strike was set to commence. FBTPI spokesman Nuratmo said that as of Monday morning, the group had not changed its mind and would go ahead with the walkout if Pertamina Patra Niaga (PPN), Pertaminas subsidiary for fuel distribution, refused to meet its demands. FBTPI has demanded that PPN give its drivers permanent employment contracts and provide them with benefits like meal allowances and holiday bonuses. We are ready. But, since we will meet with the police and representatives from Pertamina today, we will wait for the results of that meeting, he said. (win/bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Zeynep Bilginsoy (Associated Press) Istanbul Mon, October 31, 2016 Turkish police detained the chief editor and at least eight senior staff of Turkey's opposition Cumhuriyet newspaper on Monday in a continuing crackdown on dissenting voices. Editor-in-chief Murat Sabuncu, the paper's lawyer and several columnists were taken into custody following raids at their homes, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Police were searching the homes of other senior staff, including the paper's cartoonist. In all, police had warrants for the detentions of 16 staff members, the paper said. The detentions at the left-leaning and pro-secular Cumhuriyet one of Turkey's oldest newspapers come amid accusations by opposition parties and human rights groups that Turkey is using the state of emergency imposed following a failed military coup in July to clamp down not only on the alleged coup plotters but on all government critics. A statement from the Istanbul chief prosecutor's office said those detained were suspected of "committing crimes" on behalf of the movement led by US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen accused by the government of masterminding the coup attempt as well as the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. The statement said that while those detained are not accused of membership of the Gulen movement or the PKK, there are "claims" and "proof" that shortly before the July 15 coup attempt, the suspects published content that attempted to legitimize the coup. Gulen has denied any involvement in the coup attempt. Authorities have arrested close to 37,000 people as part of an investigation into the coup and more than 100,000 people have been dismissed or suspended from government jobs in a purge to eradicate Gulen's network of followers. The government over the weekend issued two new decrees that dismissed some 10,000 additional civil servants and shut down 15 mostly pro-Kurdish media outlets. Sibel Gunes, general secretary of the Turkish Journalists' Association, told The Associated Press that some 170 media outlets have been shut down since the attempted coup and 105 journalists have been arrested. In addition, authorities revoked the press accreditation of more than 600 journalists while thousands of journalists have been left unemployed, Gunes said. Opposition legislators, including Mahmut Tanal of the Republican People's Party, rushed to Cumhuriyet's headquarters in a show of solidarity and condemned the "unlawful and completely political" raid. "This is an operation against the mentality that defends the secular rule of law. It is an operation against citizens' right to information, right to learn. We will not remain silent," Tanal said. Cumhuriyet columnist Ayse Yildirim said the detentions could be a prelude toward a government takeover of the newspaper. "We are not going to hand over Cumhuriyet, we are not going to allow them to assign a trustee. We will hold our heads high and continue our publication without fear," she said outside of the paper's Istanbul headquarters. Cartoonist Musa Kart, who was also wanted for questioning, told reporters outside the building as he left to turn himself into police: "How will they explain this to the world? I am being taken into custody for drawing cartoons." Kart has been prosecuted in the past for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a cartoon. Anadolu Agency said authorities had also issued a warrant for the arrest of the paper's former editor-in-chief, Can Dundar, who was sentenced to five years in prison in May for reports in Cumhuriyet on alleged arms smuggling to Syrian rebels. The verdict is being appealed. Dundar left Turkey after the coup attempt citing a lack of judicial independence and saying he would not receive a fair trial under the circumstances. Meanwhile, two prominent Kurdish politicians, Gultan Kisanak, the mayor of Turkey's largest Kurdish-populated city of Diyarbakir, and co-mayor Firat Anli, were formally put under arrest on Sunday, days after they were taken into custody for questioning on terrorism-related charges. The two are accused of "speaking positively about the terror organization," referring to the PKK, and allowing the use of municipal vehicles for Kurdish militants' funerals, according to the prosecutor's office. Access to the internet in the region has been periodically blocked since Wednesday a move which rights activists say is aimed at restricting calls for demonstrations to denounce the mayors' detentions through social media. __ Associated Press writers Cinar Kiper in Istanbul and Suzan Fraser in Ankara contributed. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Arya Dipa (The Jakarta Post) Bandung Mon, October 31 2016 Well-planned waste management will lead to a better environment and deliver economic gains to residents and the whole city, say prominent waste management activists. American zero-waste activist Paul Connett says quality waste management requires the willing participation of people. Connett said peoples participation in waste management could start right in their houses and such participation could help local administrations deal with garbage problems. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Mon, October 31 2016 From Britain and Colombia to the US, voters seem to be really angry. In fact, in the US, a country with democratic experience of more than 200 years, supporters of one presidential candidate are so angry that they have threatened to start an armed revolution if their candidate loses on Nov. 8. Indonesia is no exception to the trend of combustible elections. Earlier in October, a bomb went off near the house of a senior official of the Golkar Party in Papua in an attack locals believed to be related to a municipal election in Jayapura. In mid-October, protesters in Gowa, South Sulawesi, torched the local council building after protesting for weeks, demanding the council revoke a regulation stipulating that a regent could assume the title of king in the local kingdom. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Satria Sambijantoro (The Jakarta Post) Mon, October 31 2016 Luky Eko Wuryanto (Courtesy of AIIB) As one of its cofounders and its eighth-biggest donor with US$672.1 million in investment over five years, Indonesia has a big stake in the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which is seen as a serious rival to the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The Jakarta Posts Satria Sambijantoro recently talked in Beijing with Luky Eko Wuryanto, AIIBs vice president, chief administration officer and the highest-ranking Indonesian on the banks management board, about the vision of his organization and infrastructure projects in Indonesia that are in the AIIBs sights. The following are excerpts from the interview. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, November 1, 2016 SN Power AS, a Norwegian state-owned enterprise, will build a hydroelectric plant in Indonesia, Norway's Ambassador to Indonesia Stig Traavik has said. Stig said the plan was currently being discussed with state-owned electricity company PLN. Therefore, he could not yet elaborate on the amount of the investment or the exact construction date. However, he said he expects to see an agreement and subsequent progress next year. "This is a company that has invested a lot in hydro power all over the world [] the company is very seriously looking for the opportunity here," he said in the State-Owned Enterprises Ministrys office on Monday. Running several plants in Laos, Myanmar, and the Philippines, SN Power is one of the biggest providers of hydroelectricity in Norway. Its parent, Statkraft, is the biggest renewable energy company in Europe. PLN corporate planning director Nicke Widyawati said SN Power's project was not included in the plan to generate an additional 35,000 megawatts of electricity in the country because it would operate as an independent power plant for industrial estates. "We are offering some potential places in Kalimantan because the island has big rivers. Then the power plant can supply electricity to the industrial estates nearby," she said. (ags) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Elena Chong (The Straits Times) Singapore Mon, October 31, 2016 An Indonesian domestic worker who forged her employer's signature on 42 cheques totalling $108,315 (US$77,810) was jailed for 21 months on Monday. Ai Teti, 37, pleaded guilty to 10 charges of forgery. Another 33 charges, including theft of a commemorative gold proof coin, were taken into consideration during sentencing. A district court heard that Ai Teti had worked for her employer, Madam Yong Fong Peng, 68, for 13 years. Investigations showed that sometime in May 2015, she stole a United Overseas Bank cheque book from her employer's bedroom. She then began to issue cheques to herself. She would insert her name into the payee column of the cheque, fill in the amount to be paid, and forge a signature purportedly belonging to Madam Yong, one of the authorized signatories. The other was her husband. She had referred to previous receipts and cheques that Madam Yong had signed to more accurately copy the latter's signature on the forged cheques. She encashed the forged cheques. No restitution has been made. She spent the money on gambling and has also remitted some back to Indonesia. Her offences came to light only after Madam Yong received her UOB statement on Nov 24 the same year. She noticed that there had been suspicious withdrawals over the past few months and lodged a police report the next day. Deputy Public Prosecutor Stephanie Chew Xizhi, who sought a sentence of 18 to 20 months' jail, said Ai Teti had abused the trust of her employer. She said the offences were pre-meditated; there was a significant loss of more than US$100,000; and the accused should not be categorized as a first-time offender. Pleading for leniency, Ai Teti promised not to commit any offense in future, and said she wished to go home as soon as possible. Her sentence was backdated to Oct 7. She could have been jailed for up to 15 years and fined for each count of forgery. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Esther Htusan and Martha Mendoza (Associated Press) Yangon, Myanmar Mon, October 31, 2016 Just five months after her party took power, Myanmar's Nobel Peace Prize-winning leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, is facing international pressure over recent reports that soldiers have been killing, raping and burning homes of the country's long-persecuted Rohingya Muslims. The US State Department joined activist and aid groups in raising concerns about new reports of rape and murder, while satellite imagery released Monday by Human Rights Watch shows that at least three villages in the western state of Rakhine have been burned. Myanmar government officials deny the reports of attacks, and presidential spokesman Zaw Htay said Monday that United Nations representatives should visit "and see the actual situation in that region." The government has long made access to the region a challenge, generally banning foreign aid workers and journalists. But the UN's special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, said serious violations, including torture, summary executions, arbitrary arrests and destruction of mosques and homes, threaten the country's fledgling democracy. "The big picture is that the government does not seem to have any influence over the military," said Chris Lewa, director of the Arakan Project, an advocacy group that focuses on the Rohingya. Myanmar's widely criticized constitution was designed to give the armed forces power and independence. A three-week surge in violence by the military was prompted by the killings of nine police officers at border posts on Oct. 9 in Rakhine, home to Myanmar's 800,000 Rohingya. There have been no arrests, and a formerly unknown Islamist militant group has taken responsibility. Although they've lived in Myanmar for generations, Rohingya are barred from citizenship in the nation of 50 million, and instead live as some of the most oppressed people in the world. Since communal violence broke out in 2012, more than 100,000 people have been driven from their homes to live in squalid camps guarded by police. Some have tried to flee by boat, but many ended up becoming victims of human trafficking or were held for ransom. When Suu Kyi's party was elected earlier this year after more than five decades of military rule, the political shift offered a short, tense window of peace. But that quickly ended as the former political prisoner and champion of human rights failed to clamp down on military atrocities. The current crackdown has prompted an estimated 15,000 people in the Rakhine area to flee their homes in the past few weeks. The satellite images from Human Rights Watch show villages burning, and residents report food supplies are growing scarce as they are living under siege. US Ambassador Scot Marciel has urged Myanmar's Foreign Ministry to investigate the allegations of attacks and restore access for humanitarian groups trying to help. "We take reports of abuses very seriously," said US Embassy spokesman Jamie Ravetz in Yangon, Myanmar. "We have raised concerns with senior government officials and continue to urge the government to be transparent, follow the rule of law, and respect the human rights of all people in responding to the original attacks and subsequent reports of abuses." Families in Rakhine depend largely on humanitarian aid for food and health care, but that support has been cut off for weeks by officials who will not allow outsiders into the region. A government-sponsored delegation of aid agencies and foreign diplomats was supposed to visit the region on Monday, but local officials said they hadn't seen anyone yet, and have not been informed they were coming. "The government should end its blanket denial of wrongdoing and blocking of aid agencies, and stop making excuses for keeping international monitors from the area," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. ___ Mendoza reported from Bangkok. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 Garuda Indonesia plans to open a new route from Bali to Chengdu in China on Jan. 15. The direct flight is slated to fly four times a week using an Airbus aircraft. The company's president director Arif Wibowo told Antara news agency that China was a huge tourist market and Chengdu served as a potential entry point to tap into. That is why we will open a direct flight from Bali to Chengdu starting in January," said Arif. (Read also: Garuda Indonesia plans to connect Mumbai with Jakarta) Chinese citizens contribute the largest number of tourist arrivals in the archipelago, beating Singapore, Malaysia and even Australia, which has always been at top of the list, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS). "We're optimistic that we can grow by 10 percent this year compared to last year. We have developed many international and domestic routes," said Arif. The national flag carrier has also revealed plans to expand to India starting at the end of this year. "We will soon open a new route from Bangkok to Mumbai. Hopefully we can reach our target this year, which is 25 million passengers for Garuda Indonesia and 11 million passengers for Citilink," said Arif. (mra/kes) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Masajeng Rahmiasri (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, October 31, 2016 With 1.6 billion members globally, the Muslim population is undoubtedly a potential market. In a bid to tap into this market, industry players have started to make adjustments to fulfill the population's demands, which communications consultant firm Ogilvy Indonesia said would contribute up to US$2.6 trillion to the worlds lifestyle and halal food industry by 2020. Shelina Janmohamed, author of Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World, emphasized that it was particularly important to pay attention to the young Muslim generation, or Generation M. (Read also: A look at mipsters, an untapped commercial market of young, hip Muslims) If we look at the way the global population is going to grow, there will be more Muslims and they will also become the younger part of (the world). They are located in the countries where the economy are rising fast, Shelina recently told The Jakarta Post during an event in South Jakarta. The British Muslim author noted that one in three Muslims were under 15 years old and two in three Muslims were under 30 years old. In 2010, around 14 percent of the global Muslim population consisted of people under 30. This generation is very young, cool, tech-savvy, confident, proud of their identity as a Muslim, creative, dynamic and energetic, she said. Shelina explained that the young generation, who believes that being faithful and modern go hand in hand, had specific characteristics. For instance, the youth who feel they can make the world a better place and that their faith is helping [them] in making the world better will try to find their place in the world. One of the ways is through consumption of products and services that they feel will help them to live the better, modern Muslim faithful life. (Read also: RI reaches out to unbanked) Shelina Janmohamed speaks at a press event in South Jakarta on Oct. 25.(JP/Masajeng Rahmiasri) Among the areas where the population may spend its money are Islamic finance, halal food, media and recreation, Muslim travel, halal pharmaceuticals, Muslim fashion and halal cosmetics, the vice president of Muslim market-centered Ogilvy Noor noted. She also talked about how this specific generation possesses different traits from older generations. She remarked that the Generation M might be interested in arts, culture and entrepreneurship and have a different view about social issues, such as opinions about the age of marriage and gender relationships in a household. "This generation will always consider whether what they are doing is an expression of being a Muslim, irrespective of what the media, the older generation, the traditionalists might tell them. These insights are related to the topic of what is it like to be a young Muslim that Shelina wrote in her book. She explained that she wrote about the topic because she felt that when the London bombings happened in 2005, there werent really any voices talking about what it meant to be a young Muslim and how it felt to live in London. (Read also: London taxis promote Indonesian tourism destinations) She wanted to present to the world insights of younger Muslim generations life, while addressing the existence of scrutiny of Muslims, whether its in the news, in the media or in the politics because of the rise of the discussion of terrorism. The story of Muslim is changing quite a lot and I think it doesnt get told very much, she said. She recounted her experience when a young man wrote to her, saying, It was like you were talking about me in your book and nobody has ever talked about that before, of what its like to be a young Muslim today, which we rarely see in the media. (kes) Who has baby fever? Belle Boggs does. Or rather, she did before she had her daughter. An attempt to understand this self-described child-longing during her trials with infertility treatments and her inability to conceive was one of the driving forces behind writing her book The Art of Waiting. As Boggs writes, in Scandanavia this phenomena is known as baby fever, and has been studied by sociologist Anna Rotkirch, who believes this desire is not a social construction but rather the expression of an instinctual longing. Rotkirch conducted a study where she placed an ad in a paper that asked people to write in with their baby fever experiences. She was flooded with letters recounting dreams of babies every night, of the need to touch onesies, of the desire borne of holding a child, of the agony of not having one. Not everyone has baby fever, thank goodness. I dont have baby fever but I am prone to obsessive thinking and my curiosity about this specific obsession and the ways that Im not in its thrall is part of what drew me to Boggss The Art of Waiting. Also, Boggs is a smart and attentive writer, and her book is championed by Eula Biss and Leslie Jamison two writers whove helped stake out a distinct corner in the medical humanities. The Art of Waiting promised to engage in a multifaceted dialogue, not just with Boggss experience with infertility treatments, but also with the broader cultural implications that lie at the intersection of child-longing and infertility and reproductive technologies, their benefits but also their detriment, and what this child-longing means for us as human animals and whether we have a choice in it. The first half of the book delivers on this, for the most part. Boggs offers an engaging and empathetic description of her inability to conceive, the way she felt personal failure. Excluded from the natural rhythm of life, Boggs became even more keenly aware of mating among human and nonhuman animals, the ways that some species like marmosets depend on the suppression of reproductive capabilities because of limited resources within a community. She considers too mating in captivity, how at a North Carolina zoo, one female gorilla mates to conceive while another is given birth control as shes groomed to take over in case the child is rejected. Boggs considers the possibility of never having children, and briefly arrives at the conscious possibility of a new purpose, a sense of self not tied to reproduction, though with regard to the book, this is fleeting. She considers Virginia Woolfs bareness and, as counterbalance, her creative output. Boggs writes too of the ways that her students become surrogate children and how they never ask why she doesnt have biological children, because, she surmises, they think theyre enough. But of course they arent. We know this as readers, and its easy to consider Boggss dilemma with compassion. But also, she might want to go one step further and ask, why isnt it? Boggs holds the reader close as she tells of her travails and heartache associated with her inability to conceive. She writes of watching Edward Albees Whos Afraid of Virginia Woolf with the high school English class she teaches. She points to the way that George kills the imaginary son in the last scene, and wonders if this killing was cruel or necessary. Boggs looks at this tendency toward surrogates among infertile couples, how Virginia Woolf wrote in her story Lappin and Lappinova of a marriage held together by a shared investment in their imaginary private world, inhabited, save for the one white hare, entirely by rabbits. Boggs too has a place within this lineage: she writes about how she and her husband unwittingly created an imaginary stuffed animal family when they first married, how theyd bring them out for holiday meals, but that later, after not being able to have children, this seemed more like a masquerade that embarrassed and pained her, and so she stuffed them in a basket with other bric-a-brac and shoved it all under the bed. And sometimes Boggss imagination is too willing to shove ideas under the bed. She writes wistfully: Nonhuman animals wait without impatience, without a deadline, and I think that is the secret to their composure. This is an oversimplification of animal experience and it doesnt interrogate or even attempt to consider the ways that other animal species might long to mother. Anna Rotkrich found as Boggs pointed out that a longing for children and to mother is instinctual. So why would Boggs assume another animal species would not feel this? Perhaps theyre at a loss to express it to her. Boggss interpretation gestures toward other species but is inherently anthropocentric. She conjectures rather than wonders, and this shuts down the possibility of delving deeper, to interrogate, research, consider, and perhaps even attempt to find companionship, an alliance, or at least acknowledge the mothering and longing that any animal might feel. Of course we all have limited life spans and periods of fertility, and while animals may not be aware of or able to communicate this longing and desire in human terms it doesnt mean that they arent affected by a similar longing. When I was a child I was gifted with a book about Koko the gorilla who was taught human sign language as part of a graduate students experiment. Koko asked for a cat but was given a stuffed animal. She knew the difference and signed, sad. When she was given a kitten she mothered it as if it were a child. How is this not mothering? And why did Boggs, when writing and researching this book, not try harder to think about the experience of the nonhuman animal beyond her own anthropomorphic fantasy? Boggs writes too with sympathy for the gorilla at the North Carolina zoo whos forced to take birth control, but she also assumes that this gorilla doesnt feel her longing: To wait without knowing [one] is waiting. Maybe not her longing, but how does she know what this gorilla thinks? Isnt this pure conjecture? Boggs looks to the nonhuman animal, to these gorillas, seemingly to expand the conversation about motherhood beyond species. But instead she uses them as a screen for her own longings. To speak of longing: what longing must salmon feel to swim upstream from their adult habitats back to their birthplaces so that they can spawn and, as a result of this journey, die? Perhaps if Boggs had encountered Jakob von Uexkulls theory of umwelt she might have considered that the gorilla has a distinct sphere of existence, that its methods of communication and perception dont necessarily translate to terms she can understand. The onus was on Boggs to delve further, to have researched the ways these animals long or dont long for motherhood. To consider what this child-longing might mean for nonhuman animals, what mothering means beyond ones own progeny. Wouldnt that have reinforced Anna Rotrichs research that baby fever is instinctual? I cant help but wonder, if this gorilla had been taught human sign language like Koko, would Boggs have been able to make the same proclamations? And if the answer is no, it seems that this is an inherent flaw. But also, Boggss observation denies that many human animals do wait without impatience, that we dont measure our personal success and failures by our reproductive capabilities, that perhaps we might recognize that a child could bring personal fulfillment, but that we dont measure our worth by it. Among those of us who arent natural caretakers, bringing a child into the world might signify an end as much as a beginning. I recently sat up late with friends, all of us in our late-30s or early-40s and childless and okay with it we realized how we would be obligated to care for a child. A child demands an investment in petty conversations at times. A child is always brilliant in its parents eyes. At least until it develops its own mind. Its easy to talk about from the outside, I realize. I see too how a child can be a source of fascination, of seeing anew. I have seen friends lives replenished and nurtured, a newfound satisfaction with life brought on by the presence of their children. But what about the idea of not having children? What does this mean historically? Boggs talks about how in the period after WWII zero families thought it was ideal to have no children. Thats changed now, or common sense tells me this. But has it really? Despite waiting longer to have children, the number of women without children in their early-40s is falling. The Washington Post recently featured a profile of philosopher Travis Rieder who works at the Berman Institute of Bioethics and who published a book about the ethical imperative of limiting reproduction. We can limit our carbon footprint most significantly by choosing not to have children, and, with significant climate change and its consequences in our near future, Reider offers a radical suggestion for action to take now: Maybe we should protect our kids by not having them. Reider himself has a child, and admits this was largely a concession because of his wifes desire to have a child. But in The Art of Waiting, these types of ethical considerations are largely superficial or left untouched. The pressure to reproduce within families is one that we need to shift, Reider argues. And this isnt entirely different from the reproductive futurism and the indisputable cult of the child that Lee Edelman described as a driving force of our heteronormative society in No Future. Edelman posits that the jouissance and non-reproductive sex associated with queerness is precisely what threatens the cult of the family, this continuous process of self-perpetuation. In the 12 years since Edelmans book, perhaps tables have reversed, so that the idea of not reproducing is now a way too to perpetuate life. But what Im pointing to is that The Art of Waiting for all of its intelligence and care and research isnt invested in considering the broader cultural and ethical contexts of assisted reproduction, of whether or not this desire to have children should be fulfilled. Or whether alternative forms of mothering when one cant carry a child to term might not conform to Boggss idea of mothering, but could be just as dynamic and fulfilling. Of the privilege of having the choice and resources to choose IVF, Boggs discusses the financial investment, how costs can reach close to $100,000, and how some states have laws that mandate health insurance cover at least part of this. Boggss answer is that she largely supports making infertility treatments more accessible. Of course she does. But its also more complicated than shes willing to grapple with. It seems that an obstacle to Boggss consideration of motherhood, infertility, and medicine is that she did conceive. That her great longing was fulfilled. With the help of contemporary medicine she was able to bring a genetic child to gestation, a child that she carried within her womb. She had this child and perhaps its unconscionable for her to truly consider the alternative forms of mothering and meaning-making and mothering through care-taking, for children not her own genetic makeup, for other species even. She says that she and her husband consider adoption, but do they really? I dont get the sense that this was a serious consideration adoption is someone elses choice, but not Boggss, and despite being down on their luck, they were privileged, were able to invest in IVF and conceived a daughter during their first course. Perhaps my expectations were set because of Bisss endorsement. Her own book, On Immunity was also published by Graywolf. As someone whos sat through an eight-hour class on vaccination and administration schedules and live versus dead vaccines, I can vouch that the straight science is rather tedious. But Biss stumbled into a rabbit hole when deciding whether or not to vaccinate her son and with which vaccines, and accompanying her as she finds her path through this is fascinating. Her son anchors the narrative, but provides more of a stepping off point to discuss the cultural history: the ways that milkmaids didnt contract smallpox because of their exposure to the virus through a cows udders. About Daniel Defoes Journal of a Plague Year, Draculas need for blood as a critique of capitalism, and about how choosing not to vaccinate as a privileged, less-at risk family, isnt ethical. That immunization is about the community, and as much as wed like to think of our bodies as distinct islands, were truly interconnected. While Biss states that the decision to vaccinate her son was an ethical decision, one that she felt she had to do despite its risks, Boggs also states that IVF was the best choice she and her husband ever made because they conceived their daughter. And while she may believe this personally, she says this without reflecting on its ethical underpinnings, like what this means for the habitability of our planet. Boggs talks about the ways infants vie for resources in the wild, but not the ways limited resources will play out for human and nonhuman animals in the near future. Many people are choosing not to have children for the good of the planet. Because of the carbon footprint. And to not consider this interconnection in this highly personal decision is an avoidance I cant not think about, perhaps fixate on, in relation to this book and discussion. Maybe it is enough for Boggs herself to [tell] the stories that dont get told, the ones some people dont want to hear, of what she and her husband learned before they had their daughter of the little known difficulties and travails of adoption, the infertility message boards and support groups, the way that passion and pleasure are replaced with clinical monitoring and pharmaceutical intervention and hormonal regulation associated with in vitro fertilization. But The Art of Waiting isnt memoir. It lacks the interrogation and consideration of what it truly means to mother beyond the heteronormative definitions of vaginal birth and sharing your offsprings DNA. Boggs looks to nonhuman animals for answers but lacks interspecies empathy, or openness to other possibilities perhaps because she doesnt care to ask, perhaps because she now has a natural-born child, perhaps because it might cast the best decision that shes ever made in a more muddled light? Its obvious Boggs considers herself a success story. With patchwork shes found a heteronormative solution, in fact, it seems that her answer is that she wishes similar luck for other who long for children. That they might not have to wait so long. This is unfortunately where the discussion rests. Popular Instagrammer ClerkenwellBoy Cook For Syria indulges Brits passion for food by encouraging restaurateurs, chefs, bakers and cafe owners from around the country to add a Syrian twist to one of their dishes or add a Syria-inspired dish to their menu. For each dish sold, outlets will donate 2 to UNICEFs Syria Relief fund. Restaurants adding a Syrian twist to their menus include Brunswick House, Patty & Bun, Pizza Pilgrims and Berber & Q. If you fancy something sweeter, Crosstown Doughnuts is selling cinnamon scrolls for the whole month in locations across London, or try Borough Market. Theres even events at some of your favourite London restaurants. Jamie Olivers Fifteen is doing a souped-up brunch for 40 and Honest Burger is departing from burgers to offer the Honest Kebab as part of a three-course meal for 25. Organisers will be releasing a cookbook to raise further funds, so if you cant get involved by eating out, consider buying some delicious recipes. A council has apologised unreservedly after accidentally sending residents a letter that directed them to a hardcore porn website. Mid Suffolk District Council sent the letter as a reminder for people to check their eligibility to vote, but mistakenly included a link to an adult website instead of to the intended respond page on the local authoritys website. We would like to apologise for any offence caused from the incorrect web address on an electoral registration form in Barham and Claydon Mid Suffolk Council (@MidSuffolk) October 28, 2016 Michael Evans, the strategic director for Mid Suffolk and Babergh District Councils, described the mistake as a technical slip, stating: Sending out this web address was absolutely not our intent and we apologise unreservedly to anyone who received it. Suffolk council send an email with a link directing residents to a porn site someone was distracted that day!!! #error #funny Rachel Hemstalk (@Rachiebaby1987) October 28, 2016 Evans said the mistake had occurred due to a mail merge error on the letter, which is also thought to have asked residents to call 00000 000 000 to register their eligibility to vote. 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Namun jangan khawatir, disini sebagai situs slot gacor MGS88 kami akan memberikan penjelasan lengkap mengenai tentang istilah yang ada di RTP SLOT dibawah ini. Foreigner found dead off Koh Pha Ngan with rocks in backpack SURAT THANI: Forensic experts in Bangkok will try to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of an unidentified Westerner found in the water off Koh Pha Ngan with a backpack filled with rocks. deathhomicidemarinepolice By Bangkok Post Monday 31 October 2016, 09:29AM Five rocks were found in the backpack of a man found dead off Koh Pha Ngan last Thursday (Oct 27). Photo: Supapong Chaolan The mans body is being sent from Surat Thani to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Bangkok after he was found drifting off the popular resort island last Thursday (Oct 27). Apichart Boonsriroj, the Surat Thani police commander, requested the forensic examination after police in Koh Pha Ngan district were unable to reach a conclusion on the cause of death or identify the deceased. The man, believed to be a European, was found in the Gulf of Thailand about 500 metres off the island last Thursday. He was wearing blue shorts and was shirtless. He was also wearing a backpack with five rocks among the items found inside. Col Kusol Pankerd, a deputy superintendent with the Koh Pha Ngan Police Station, said last Thursday that the man may have been dead for up to five days. Maj Gen Apichart said there was no conclusive evidence of the cause of his death and did not rule out homicide. The rocks inside the backpack could have been used to add weight for diving, but they could also have been used by a killer to weigh the body down, he added. Police on Koh Pha Ngan are asking all resorts to review their guest registers to determine if anyone is unaccounted for. Read original story here. Phuket hitch-hiking python captured, released PHUKET: A man driving along Srisoonthorn Rd in central Phuket yesterday was given a surprise when another motorist signalled for him to pull over and yelled that there was a big snake hitching a ride under the pickup truck. animalstransport By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 31 October 2016, 12:34PM Arkom Bobthong, 49, was driving his three-wheeler motorbike with sidecar (samlor) home when he saw the snake under the moving pickup truck. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Arkom Bobthong, 49, was driving his three-wheeler motorbike with sidecar (samlor) home when he saw the snake under the moving pickup truck. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Arkom Bobthong, 49, was driving his three-wheeler motorbike with sidecar (samlor) home at about 2:15pm yesterday (Oct 30) when he saw the snake hitching a ride under the moving pickup truck. After Mr Arkom on his samlor and the pickup truck driver pulled over, they called Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers to come and free the snake, which was reluctant to alight from the vehicle. After a lengthy effort to capture the snake with their trusty pole with noose device, the rescue workers were finally able to bag the python. It was over two metres long and weighed 11.5kg, one rescue worker told The Phuket News. As is standard practice, the rescue workers later released the snake at an undisclosed location. Phuket touts sustainable tourism, environment at ITOP Forum PHUKET: Vice Governor Teera Anantaseriwidhya has highlighted the importance of sustainable tourism for Phuket at the 20th Inter-Islands Tourism Policy Forum (ITOP Forum) 2016 held in Sri Lanka last week. tourismenvironmentnatural-resourcesconstructioneconomics By The Phuket News Monday 31 October 2016, 03:53PM Key Phuket tourism officials were at the 20th Inter-Islands Tourism Policy Forum (ITOP Forum) 2016 in Sri Lanka last week. Photo: PR Dept Vice Governor Teera Anantaseriwidhya highlighted the importance of sustainable tourism for Phuket at the 20th Inter-Islands Tourism Policy Forum (ITOP Forum) 2016 in Sri Lanka last week. Photo: PR Dept Key Phuket tourism officials were at the 20th Inter-Islands Tourism Policy Forum (ITOP Forum) 2016 in Sri Lanka last week. Photo: PR Dept Phuket Vice Governor Teera Anantaseriwidhya (left) with Hon Dr Hemakumara Nanayakkara, Governor of the Sri Lankas Southern Province, at the 20th Inter-Islands Tourism Policy Forum (ITOP Forum) 2016 last week. Photo: PR Dept The forum, held on October 24-27, was attended by high-ranking representatives from the 13 ITOP member regions, which includes Jeju, Hainan, Bali, Penang and Hawaii, among others. The forum was presided by Hon Dr Hemakumara Nanayakkara, Governor of the Southern Province, a tourism hotbed among Sri Lankas eight provinces. Speaking last Tuesday (Oct 25), V/Gov Teera delivered his keynote address titled Environmental conservation and tourism of island provinces. Phuket fully supports the development of cultural tourism among ITOP members and has maintained good relations with these member provinces, he said. Phuket is known for tourism, each year we have millions tourists come for our nature, beaches and cultural attractions. Phuket has a perfect cultural combination known as East meet West, so we want to develop our tourism side by side with environmental conservation as part of our strategy for 2015-2017, V/Gov Teera explained. Our vision is to turn Phuket into a sustainable international tourism destination. We want to promote and develop tourism together with environmental conservation, such as the preservation of the Phuket Old Town and the creation of a new tourism attraction by focusing on better environment, such as at Surin Beach. We will bring the public in to help us promote natural resources and improving environmental campaigns, such as promoting using bags made out of cloth instead of plastic and widely promoting beach-cleaning projects, he said. The Smart City policy will also play a part in Phukets sustainable tourism future, V/Gov Teera added. Phuket also has a Smart City project which in the future will help us reduce our energy consumption, he said. We have many projects to help develop a healthy environment for our future. Our goal of being international tourism island that will last is to manage our environment side by side with the ever-increasing demands of development, especially tourism development, V/Gov Theera noted. ITOPs goal is to promote tourism and to exchange ideas and cultural insight among members so we can help each other develop our countries, he concluded. ITOP comprises 13 member regions: Jeju, South Korea Hainan, China Okinawa, Japan Bali, Indonesia Southern Province, Sri Lanka Hawaii, United States Zanzibar, Tanzania Phuket, Thailand Cebu, Philippines Penang, Malaysia Prince Edward, Canada Kampong Cham, Cambodia Gotland, Sweden Phuket, Thailand's sole island province, has been a member of ITOP since 2008. Three Russians injured in Phuket when car crashes into excavator PHUKET: Three Russians were injured this morning (Oct 31) when they car they were travelling in crashed into the back of a stationery excavator. accidentspolicetransport By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 31 October 2016, 12:35PM There were no warning lights on the excavator. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Lt Sunan Patnoo, an investigator from Thalang Police Station, was notified by a local resident at 5:30am today that a car had crashed into the back of a stationary excavator on Sunthon Rd in Baan Manik. Lt Sunan explained, There were three foreigners injured in the accident. Kusoldharm rescue workers attended the scene to provide medical assistance and later transported the injured parties to Thalang Hospital We later found that the three people were Russian nationals; Mr Martynov Pavel, 23, Ms Natalia Eremikhina, 23, and Mr Savenko Vitaliy, 50, he said. We have been told that Mr Savenko was driving the white Toyota Vios towards Heroines Monument when he drove into the back of the excavator which had no warning lights. We believe the accident happened because it was dark and Mr Savenko could not see the parked excavator. However, we will investigate further to find the true cause of the accident, he added. Two arrested for Patong tuk-tuk boss murder PHUKET: Police have arrested two suspects for their part in the public slaying of Sakol Srisompotch, President of the Patong Tuk-Tuk Club, who was shot dead in his tuk-tuk in Kathu in the early hours of last Tuesday (Oct 25). patongtourismdeathcrimehomicidepolice By Darawan Naknakhon Monday 31 October 2016, 10:35AM Wattana Dam Nawakeaw, 38, was taken into custody after a warrant for his arrest was issued on Friday (Oct 28), Col Amponwat said. Photo: Darawan Naknakhon Mr Sakol, 58, was found dead in the cab of his tuk-tuk at about 3am last Tuesday in front of the Phuket Villa housing estate on Phra Phuket Kaew Rd in Kathu. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Four other suspects, including the gunman and the getaway driver, remain at large, Kathu Police Deputy Chief Investigator Lt Col Amponwat Seangreung told The Phuket News. Mr Sakol, 58, was found dead in the cab of his tuk-tuk at about 3am last Tuesday in front of the Phuket Villa housing estate on Phra Phuket Kaew Rd in Kathu. The tuk-tuk had come under repeated fire at close range. (See story here.) Wattana Dam Nawakeaw, 38, was taken into custody after a warrant for his arrest was issued on Friday (Oct 28), Col Amponwat said. The warrant was issued on evidence presented by Kathu Police showing the involvement of two of six suspects involved the crime. The evidence included CCTV footage and witness statements, he said. Wattana faces charges of conspiracy to murder, conspiracy to illegally obtaining a firearm, and conspiracy to bringing a gun into a public area without permission, Col Amponwat noted. The second suspect, a 17-year-old who police named only as Tong, was arrested at a rental room on Sakdidet Rd on Friday (Oct 28), he said. The teenager faces the same charges, Col Amponwat added. Wattana has denied all charges, but Tong has admitted to all the charges against him, Col Amponwat said. Col Amponwat explained that Mr Sakol, 58, had been engaged in conflicts over operating tuk-tuks in Patong for a long time. Mr Sakol also had previously filed a complaint with police that Mr Wattana was using illegal tuk-tuks to serve tourists in Patong, Col Amponwat explained. Mr Wattana was arrested in September this year, he added. We believe that this inspired Mr Wattana to plan to murder Mr Sakol with Tong, Col Amponwat said. Police are still looking for four other suspects the gunman, the getaway driver and two other suspects wanted for their involvement in the crime. We know that these four suspects have fled the province already, but we have warrants of arrest issued for them and we are working with other police to bring them in, Col Amponwat added. Wild macaque at Phuket resort to be moved to wildlife reserve PHUKET: A wild macaque that wandered into the grounds of a high-end resort on Phukets west coast over the weekend has been handed over to wildlife officials so they can move the monkey to a reserve in Phang Nga. animalsenvironment By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 31 October 2016, 05:28PM The macaque will be taken to a wildlife reserve in Phang Nga. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The macaque will be taken to a wildlife reserve in Phang Nga. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub A staffer at the Paresa Resort caught the macaque, which has yet to be given a nickname, at about 3pm yesterday (Oct 30). I was afraid that the monkey was going to hurt tourists, so I trapped it in a cage which we keep at the resort just in case of such situations, the staffer, who asked not to be named, explained. The staffer then called the Nature and Wildlife Education Centre at the Khao Phra Thaew None-Hunting Area in Thalang for officers to come and collect the macaque. Pongchart Chouehorm, Chief of the Nature and Wildlife Education Centre, told The Phuket News, Surprisingly, the macaque was alone. Normally macaques always stay troupes. I think this one became separated from its troupe in the Kamala hills nearby and for some reason came down to the resort. Officers will bring the macaque back to the Nature and Wildlife Education Centre, then send it to the Phang Nga Wildlife Nursery Station where officers there can take care of it, Chief Pongchart said. Watertown churches to open faith-based pregnancy center in town Watertown has a family planning clinic that provides pregnancy care, but area churches are looking to open a pregnancy center based in faith. China, U.S. to hold talks on strategic security issues 2016-10-29 17:47 BEIJING, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- China and the United States will hold an inter-sessional meeting of the China-U.S. Strategic Security Dialogue in Beijing on Oct. 29. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said at a news briefing on Tuesday that the meeting will be co-chaired by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui. Both sides will exchange views on China-U.S. relations as well as strategic security issues of mutual concern, Lu said. A costumed couple poses for a photo during a Day of the Dead parade in Mexico City, Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016. Hollywood movies, zombie shows, Halloween and even politics are fast changing Mexico's Day of the Dead celebrations, which traditionally consisted of quiet family gatherings at the graves of their departed loved ones bringing them music, drink and conversation. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills) China urges Japan to reflect on history after Abe's offering to shrine 2016-10-29 17:47 BEIJING, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday called on Japan to face up to and reflect upon its past aggressions, after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. The Yasukuni Shrine, regarded by many as a symbol of Japanese militarism, honors 14 Class-A convicted war criminals as well as millions of war dead. "We firmly opposes the wrong-doings of Japanese politicians," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a daily press briefing, stating that Japan should make a clear break with its militarist past so as to win trust from its Asian neigbors and the international community. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close Job Title: Environmental Specialist Organization: World Bank Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda Job #: 162307 About World Bank: The World Bank Group is one of the worlds largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It uses financial resources and extensive experience to help our client countries to reduce poverty, increase economic growth, and improve quality of life. To ensure that countries can access the best global expertise and help generate cutting-edge knowledge, the World Bank Group is constantly seeking to improve the way it works. Key priorities include delivering measurable results, promoting openness and transparency in development, and improving access to development information and data. Job Summary: The Environmental Specialist will support the GPs work on the application of environmental policy to Bank investment lending, including risk management and knowledge and learning initiatives. The Environmental Specialist will play an essential role in the application of the Banks environmental policies (i.e. Environmental Assessment (OP 4.01), Natural Habitats (OP 4.04), Pest Management (OP 4.09), Physical Cultural Resources (OP 4.11), Forests (OP 4.36), and Safety of Dams (OP 4.37)) and in supporting the use of environmental assessments methodologies across a range of sectors and country contexts. The Environmental Specialist will be part of a dynamic team of environment and natural resources management specialists working in the Global Practice. The incumbent will also provide technical expertise on a variety of environmental issues related to investment operations, development policy loans, and other instruments, such as Technical Assistance, including with regard to adaptation to climate change, natural resources management and green and inclusive growth. Responsibilities: Key Duties andResponsibilities: Actively participate as team member in the preparation and/or supervision of environmental safeguards policy requirements in different Bank funded operations, including participating in identification missions; supporting implementation of safeguards policy requirements and seeking opportunities to integrate sound environmental management and policies in various investment operations; maintaining regular dialogue with the client and enhance their capacity on environmental policies; and contributing to Aide Memoires. Seek and develop opportunities to integrate sound environmental management and environment safeguards policies in different investment operations, participate as a team member in such operations and related analytical work, and enhance local capacities for implementing these policies. Maintain dialogue and coordination between the Uganda national counterparts/Government and the teams working in Uganda, with an emphasis in developing long-lasting relations with Government counterparts and relevant national institutions. Significantly contribute to and participate in quality reviews within the Region and provide environmental input in project documents in accordance with the Bank operational policies including Concept Review, Appraisal and Decision/Negotiations Packages. Actively facilitate and maintain effective communication with the local partners, Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), civil society, the private sector as well as specialized international organizations in line with the Banks Access to Information Policy and need to harmonize with clients and other International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in the region. Actively participate in and/or possibly lead natural resource projects and the policy dialog with the government and other stakeholder relevant to environment or natural resources in Kenya/Uganda/Rwanda. This includes coordination with other financiers, review of sector policies, strategies, and legislation. Coordinate and carry out other tasks as requested by the relevant Practice manager such as contribute to the organization of training or knowledge sharing events. Experience: Qualifications, Skills andExperience: The applicant for the World Bank Environmental Specialist career opportunity should hold an Advanced degree (PhD or Masters) in environmental economics, environmental science/engineering, natural resources management or related field, preferably with major in one or more of the following areas: environmental institutions or policy, environmental health or pollution, forestry, biodiversity or climate change. At least five years of full-time relevant professional experience in the environment sector. Broad knowledge and experience in one or more of the following areas: environmental management, environmental sector policy, or integrated development planning or climate change mitigation or adaption, in various sectors (e.g., water supply and sanitation; transport, energy, natural disaster management, rural development, environmental pollution and health). Previous exposure and experience working in middle income countries; understanding of the institutional and political context and exposure to the national environmental policy challenges. International work experience would be an advantage. Proven teamwork and successful experience working with multi-disciplinary teams. Demonstrated project management / operational skills and familiarity with Bank procedures and business practices including occupational health and safety management and the WBG safeguard policies would be an advantage. Experience working with a wide range of stakeholders, NGOs, private sector international organizations, development partners and/or with the government will be an advantage. A strong sense of team work and ability to work independently with limited supervision; Strong interpersonal and communication skills. Willingness to travel extensively in rural areas of Kenya/Uganda/Rwanda if necessary. Fluency in English is required (writing, speaking, listening and reading). Personal Competencies: Broad knowledge and experience in successfully applying the environmental safeguard policies and high risk projects, especially infrastructure projects, in sectors such as Agriculture, Energy, Transport, Urban and Water Infrastructure. Applies technical knowledge on the job and provides inputs to country and sector strategies. Interacts with clients on technical level. Environmental Policy, Strategy and Institutions Basic understanding of environmental policies, strategies, institutions, and regulations, specifically related to climate change. Environmental Sciences Basic experience applying knowledge (air pollution and meteorology; soil science; water; ecosystems; conservation; agriculture concerns, etc.) to policy-related decisions and advice. Project Design for Impact and Sustainability Contributes to the design of projects and programs, based on an understanding of the country and sector context. Sector Dialogue IL Contributes to dialogues with the client on familiar topics, with a narrow scope, based on a solid understanding of the sector. Operational Project Management Demonstrates basic knowledge and understanding of project management tools & methodologies, as well as of Bank instruments and processes related to project preparation & implementation, resource management, and stakeholder communications. Strategic and Technical Analyses for Country/Sector Issues Contributes to the formulation and implementation of complex analytical work and policy papers, leveraging relevant analytical tools and a grasp of issues surrounding policy and sector reform. Client Orientation Demonstrates diplomacy, tact and sensitivity in the face of conflicting demands or directions and provides inputs to develop evidence-based advice and solutions based on sound diagnosis and knowledge. Drive for Results Provides inputs to efforts to identify and acquire resources to accomplish results involving multiple stakeholders and contributes to solutions to obstacles affecting key deliverables. Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion Participates in teams to achieve outcomes, provides inputs to team solutions and demonstrates good inter-personal skills for teamwork, demonstrating respect for different points of view. Knowledge, Learning and Communication Contributes to sharing of best practice, trends, knowledge and lessons learned across units and with clients and partners, articulating ideas verbally and in writing in a clear and compelling way across audiences of varied levels. Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making Under direction of senior staff, gathers inputs, contributes to risk assessments, and provides information relevant to assessment of decisions affecting internal and external stakeholders. How to Apply: All suitably qualified and interested candidates who wish to join the World Bank in the aforementioned capacity are encouraged to send their applications Online by reviewing details at the web link below and clicking Apply Now on getting a broader insight of vacancy. Deadline: 14th November 2016 find us on our Facebook page For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com orfind us on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline Job Title: Head of Finance and Administration Organization: African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect ( ANPPCAN ) Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda Reports to: Executive Director About US: The African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN) Uganda Chapter is a non-profit child focused organization working to protect and promote the rights of children in Uganda. Job Summary: The Head of Finance and Administration will offer strategic direction and leadership in the area of financial management and to ensure that the organisations overall strategic objectives are met within the framework of the financial management policies. The Head of Finance and Administration also ensures that there is adherence to local and international financial management procedures and guidelines. The job is critical towards: Supporting the Executive Director in ensuring efficient and effective utilization of the organizations human and financial resources in accordance with ANPPCANs policies and procedures, Providing overall leadership to the Finance and Administration team of the organisation, maintaining a sound and optimal Human resources management system and environment in the organisation, Supporting the Executive Director in the overall management of the organization as part of the organizations senior management team as well as the smooth day-to-day administration of the ANPPCAN Secretariat Responsibilities: Key Duties andResponsibilities: Responsible for ensuring the development, implementation and monitoring of ANPPCANs financial transactions. Ensuring that transactions are recorded, in line with fund accounting policies, on an accurate and timely basis and financial reports and accountabilities are provided to stakeholders by the prescribed deadlines. In charge of maintaining a strong internal control environment. Promote a shared culture and ownership of strong internal controls throughout the organization. Ensuring the implementation and monitoring of internal control processes that are in line with existing ANPPCANs finance policies and minimize loss of organizations assets. Preparing and analysing timely and accurate financial statements direct from the ANPPCANs financial database. Produce monthly management accounts and monitoring for performance and efficiency. Analyze ANPPCANs financial data on a monthly basis; track key indicators and timelines. Provide written or verbal analysis for management and program staff as and when required. Work closely with other management team members to develop and finalize the quarterly and annual plans and budgets. Prepare budgets for all concepts papers and proposals in cooperation with the program development team in accordance with the deadlines. In charge of ensuring that the organization at all times remains compliant to all relevant laws and regulations by constantly monitoring and adhering to the legal and regulatory requirements. Ensuring that the operating environment minimises the risk for the potential loss of organizational resources and reputation. Advise management on corrective measures needed and success of previous actions taken. Supporting all external audits ensuring the timely implementation of all audit recommendations. Ensuring proper accountability for the organizations funds as per the established guidelines and procedures. Supporting the Executive Director in the recruitment, training, disciplining and promotion of staff as appropriate. Develop staff development opportunities and promote performance management systems. Supporting the Executive Director in the overall management of the organization as part of the senior management team as well as day to day administration of the Secretariat. Carrying out any other duties as might be necessary for maintaining and effective financial management system. Experience: Qualifications, Skills andExperience: The ideal candidate should preferably hold a Bachelors Degree in Finance and Accounting from a reputable university. A Masters Degree in Finance and Accounting is desirable. Full professional accounting qualifications such as ACCA, CPA. At least five years experience with at least three of these at management level in accounting and finance preferably in an NGO sector Broad knowledge of MS computer packages and Quickbooks accounting software Broad knowledge of donor accounting procedures Working knowledge of tax laws and systems in Uganda Skills in budgeting and budgetary control How to Apply: filled Application Form, E-mail address: recruitment@anppcanug.org. All suitably qualified and interested candidates should submit thisfilled Application Form, download here and send it to thisE-mail address: recruitment@anppcanug.org. 2016 by 5pm Deadline: Friday, 18th November,2016 by 5pm NB: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Patnaik's close aides say that to understand him, one has to understand his empathy By Pratul Sharma/Photos Sanjay Ahlawat Recently, the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Udaipur implemented CampusNexus -- a campus management solution from Campus Management India, the Indian arm of the US-based Campus Management Corp. Ever since the solution went live at the institute, the benefits started coming in. The institute was able to roll out its recruitment and retention programme, the solution helping in centralising and automating key processes and administrative functions at the institute. It also helped in improving student services. From an operational perspective, each and every function at the various departments became streamlined and automated. Functions such as admissions, academics, student accounts, finance, human resources and compliance management have benefitted from the implementation of this campus management solution. Logo of US based Campus Management Corp | Campus Management Corp The company also rolled out its solution at the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). The strategy was to centralise and monitor all skilling programs across ministries and agencies. The solution enables citizen services to be accessible over the Internet, through mobile phones, kiosks, call centres as well as through personal computers. Currently, there are around 7500 skilling centres that are registered with the NSDC and close to 10 million users. They work with the centre to get course content. At the backend, the skilling is done and the candidate data is uploaded. Our solution helps educational institutions to gain greater visibility and improve communications across its departments. It also helps automate functions, from strategic enrolment management and financial aid to career services and alumni relations. Besides, this campus management solution also provides visibility into students experiences, needs and enables highly personalised communications and services," said Rajendra C Mruthyunjayappa, Managing Director, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and Middle East-Campus Management, told THE WEEK. "The potential for campus management solutions in India is great as there are around 34,000 colleges and 750 universities in India and many of them have only automated parts of their departments. We are aiming at an end-to-end implementation. An institute or university can automate and manage everything from brand building, student admissions, linking an alumni network through a campus management solution, he said. The CampusNexus solution also includes an admissions process which is helping universities improve recruitment results and maximise yield. In addition to this, the solution also helps in managing students retention at universities. We observed that student retention is one of the biggest concerns facing higher educational institutes today and they need a way to proactively identify and engage students. Our solution is offering a retention configuration tool that embodies communications, campaigns, and work flows for keeping students engaged and achieve success. Besides India, we have also implemented our solution at some foreign universities in countries such as Uganda and Tunisia, added Mruthyunjayappa. In order to cater to small colleges the company is also offering SmartCampus that unites and automates functions such as admissions, communication and collaboration, HR and payroll, facility management, operational analytics, student information, examinations among others on a single platform. The suite is aimed at enabling colleges to gain better control over their day to day operations while complying with local regulatory norms. Poor regions to share earnings from resource exploitation projects: cabinet 2016-10-29 17:47 BEIJING, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- In the latest step in the country's fight against poverty, China's cabinet released a plan on Tuesday that will enable the poor to share earnings from local hydropower plants and mining projects. To pilot the reform, the government will choose a maximum of 20 projects in impoverished contiguous areas and counties targeted in the state poverty alleviation program, according to the State Council plan. Local rural residents will be able to acquire stakes in such projects with compensation they receive for land occupied by the project construction, the plan said. This way, rural residents get proceeds from the operation of the projects, with priority given to registered poor households. The reform will be carried out from late 2016 to the end of 2019, and the chosen projects will start construction in 2017. The environment will be strictly protected during the project, the plan said. By the end of 2015, China still had 55.75 million people living in poverty, equivalent to the entire population of a medium-sized country. The government has named poverty reduction as one of its top priorities, pledging to eradicate poverty in China by 2020. More than 600 million Chinese were lifted out of poverty over the past three decades -- about 70 percent of the global total. The reform was part of the country's "precision" poverty relief, or targeted efforts to help specific impoverished groups, said Yang Qian, an official with the National Development and Reform Commission. The poorest regions in China are rich in water or mineral resources, but development projects in these areas have done little to bring local people out of poverty due to ineffective profit-sharing. With these reforms, poor people will get long-term stable proceeds from the exploitation of local natural resources, compared with the current lump-sum compensation payments, Yang told a press briefing, "If the pilot projects go smoothly, the reform will allow local residents to get higher proceeds than they receive now," Yang said. "But there are uncertainties too, depending on market changes and business operation." To ensure the proceeds, authorities should choose projects that are economically viable with good profitability prospects and a short period of construction to pilot the reform, the plan said. A new variety of extra early maturing variety of arhar, a pulse also called toovar, has been developed by scientists of the Indian Council for Agricultural Research. Representative image | Reuters Named PUSA-Arhar 16, the pulse will mature in 120 days and is semi-dwarf in the range of 95 to 120 cms. It is a high yielding variety. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Radha Mohan Singh on Monday made field visits to see the new variety of pulses. Singh expressed hope that the country would soon become self-sufficient in pulses. This PUSA Arhar 16 allows dense plant population of 3,30,000 plants per hectare which is important to realise higher yield and mechanisation. Traditional varieties do not allow high density planting as their plant type is indeterminate and spreading type. All items of farm machinery used for wheat, from sowing to harvesting, are fully utilisable for cultivation of NPT Arhar. PUSA-Arhar 16 allows effective spraying of insecticide even with Knapsack sprayer for effective control of insects due to compactness and dwarfness. This new plant type, with synchronous maturity, is also suitable for combine harvesting and thus does not require manual laborers for harvesting and threshing. Eight terrorists belonging to the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), who escaped from the Bhopal Central Jail, were killed in an encounter barely a few kilometres away from the jail. According to Bhopal IG Yogesh Chaudhary, the terrorists were killed in an encounter after a person from Acharpura village informed the police about the presence of the escapees in the village in the wee hours. Chaudhary said the terrorists were armed. Meanwhile, the ruling BJP said it would celebrate the elimination of SIMI terrorists as Diwali. Many BJP workers came out to the streets of Bhopal after the news of the encounter broke out. Cheif Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan, in a hurriedly called press conference, declared that the police efficiently swung into action immediately after the prison break late last night. India on Monday continued its discussions with China over the issue of its membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which Beijing has been stalling. Sources said Amandeep Singh Gill, Joint Secretary (Disarmament & International Security) in the Ministry of External Affairs, held talks with Wang Qun, director general in the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, over the issue of India's membership in the NSG. Wang leads Chinese delegations in NSG deliberations. According to sources, the talks were substantive and constructive and the engagement would continue according to the directive of the leadership of both countries. At the NSG plenary in Seoul in June, China had blocked India's membership on the ground that for a country to become a member of the 48-nation bloc, it has to be a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). On September 13, Gill and Wang started their discussions on the issue in New Delhi. Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Monday continued their protest demanding action into the mysterious disappearance of Najeeb Ahmed, a first-year student at the university who has been missing for 17 days. Najeeb Ahmed went missing on the intervening night of October 14-15 after being beaten by a 20-strong mob of students who had gone campaigning to his door for hostel elections. About 100-125 students gathered at the Administrative Block inside the university campus and voiced their concern about Ahmed's safety and called on university officials to bring his assaulters to book. "The movement will be intensified further now. It has been 17 days since Najeeb's disappearance and no action has been taken against the students who had beaten him," Rama Naga, ex-General Secretary of JNUSU, told IANS. "Members of the students' union and Najeeb's family will meet the Delhi Chief Minister ON tUESDAY and raise the issue with him. We are also exploring our legal options against the varsity officials for their failure to act judiciously," he added. After an FIR was filed by Ahmed's mother, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Delhi Police was also formed to trace Ahmed. "We are working very hard on the case. I don't think there's any need to disclose the details of the investigation; but as of now we haven't got any solid lead," Ishwar Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), South District, also in-charge of the SIT, told IANS. The JNUSU had organised a sit-in outside the Administrative Block on Diwali to denounce the insincerity of the varsity officials and police in search for Najeeb Ahmed. Close to 300 students took part in the sit-in, 'Light A Ray Of Hope For Najeeb', to express their solidarity with Ahmed and his grieving family on Sunday night. Mystery surrounds the disappearance of top maoist leader Akkiraju Haragopal alias Ramakrishna. It is suspected that RK, as he was also known, was present at the meeting in Malkangiri when it was ambushed by the law enforcement. Did he escape with other top leaders? Was he, the most well-known face in the maoist central committee, nabbed by the Greyhound after the Malkangiri encounter? Maoist sympathisers and human rights activists have alleged that RK was in police custody and demanded that he be produced before the court. The secretary of CPI (Maoist) east division committee Kailash also claims so. Based on these claims, the Hyderabad High Court today directed the AP government to disclose whether the top Maoist leader was under the police custody. In an audio release, the Maoist leader said that security personnel had taken top naxal leader Ramakrishna alias RK in their custody. RK, the central committee secretary of the banned outfit CPI (Maoist), has been missing since the fierce encounter with police last week in Malkangiri district of Odisha in which over 30 Naxalites were killed. Ramakrishnas wife Sirisha also filed a habeas corpus petition before the high court. Admitting the petition, the court asked the AP government to file a counter by November 3 when further hearing of the case would be resumed. The court opined that it was the responsibility of the government to ensure protection of all citizens, irrespective of their views. It has asked the state advocate general to ascertain whether Ramakrishna was alive or was killed in the encounter. We have credible information that my husband is under the custody of the police. The Court also agreed to our argument that Ramakrishna would have contacted us if he is alive and hiding somewhere. He is missing in action since October 24 when the encounter took place, Sirisha told media persons outside the court premises. The civil liberties groups in Hyderabad and in the coastal Andhra city of Visakhapatnam are not ready to listen to the argument of the AP government that it had no jurisdiction over the encounter incident that occurred in the neighbouring Odisha. How can the AP government send its elite anti Naxal force (Grey Hounds) to Malkangiri and say that it has no knowledge, the Maoist ideologue and revolutionary poet Varavara Rao asked. We strongly believe that Ramakrishna is under the police custody and his life is in danger, he said. The police denied taking the Maoist leader into custody. Such allegations are part of the usual tactics employed by Maoist sympathisers, said Visakhapatnam (rural) superintendent of police Rahul Dev Sharma, who has also been threatened by the maoists. At least 60 prisoners were killed and 38 others injured when Saudi-led air strikes hit a prison in Yemeni Red Sea port city of al-Hodayda on Sunday, authorities said. The targeted prison, located in al-Zaydiya district of al-Hodayda, was bombed to the ground in a series of air strikes that began at dawn and lasted hours, Xinhua news agency reported. Rescue teams were still searching for survivors at the site. The health office of al-Hodayda sent an emergency call to people to donate blood to save the injured. It was the latest in a series of air strikes that targeted civilians in Yemen since the war began in March last year. On Saturday, the coalition warplanes killed a total of 27 civilians, mostly children and women, in three Yemeni provinces of Saada, Marib and Taiz, according to residents, medics and local officials. Earlier this month, the air strikes hit a funeral hall in the capital Sanaa, killing 140 mourners, including children, and wounded over 600 others. Saudi Arabia intervened in the Yemeni conflict in March last year to restore its ally President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and his government to power, after Houthis and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh fought a revolution against "Hadi government corruption" and drove Hadi with his cabinet out of power to flee into exile. The Saudi-led coalition has ever since failed to restore Hadi or recapture northern provinces from the allied Houthi and Saleh forces which have also controlled the capital Sanaa. The Saudi-led air strikes and ground combat have killed over 10,000 Yemenis, mostly children and women, and forced more than two million to flee their homes. Spotlight: Xi's South, Southeast Asia tour deepens mutually beneficial cooperation, creates win-win prospect 2016-10-29 17:47 by Fei Liena BEIJING, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's visits to Cambodia and Bangladesh, and attendance at the eighth BRICS summit in India have yielded fruitful results, contributing to further cooperation among developing countries, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Monday. PUSHING TRADITIONAL CHINA-CAMBODIA PARTNERSHIP TO NEW LEVEL The friendship between China and Cambodia has always been solid and full of vigor since the two countries established diplomatic ties 58 years ago, Wang said. In recent years, the bilateral comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership has been developing to a higher level, bringing concrete benefits to both peoples, he said. During Xi's visit to Cambodia, the first leg of his Southeast and South Asia tour, the two sides have reached broad consensus on strengthening pragmatic cooperation in various fields, and have signed 31 cooperative documents on major projects such as those under the auspices of the Belt and Road Initiative, the dovetailing of development strategies, production capacity investment, and the construction of the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone. Xi and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen have agreed to deepen the bilateral comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership so as to better serve the two peoples, Wang said. ENHANCING MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL COOPERATION WITH BANGLADESH Xi's state visit to Bangladesh is the first by a Chinese head of state in three decades, Wang said. During Xi's visit, the two sides issued a joint declaration, upgrading China-Bangladesh relationship to a strategic cooperative partnership. Xi and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina agreed that their countries will support each other and cooperate closely during their respective processes of realizing the dreams of "two centenary goals" and "Sonar Bangla," Wang said. The two countries have decided to cooperate in major projects in production capacity, energy and electricity, transportation, telecommunications, infrastructure and agriculture, and agreed to start the feasibility studies on the establishment of a China-Bangladesh free trade area, and establish a series of mechanisms such as bilateral dialogue and cooperation on maritime affairs, according to Wang. The two sides have also signed more than 30 important cooperative treaties, Wang added. During the visit, both leaders have reached important consensus on implementing mutually beneficial cooperation, and jointly pushing forward the Belt and Road Initiative. They agreed to broaden cooperation in marine economy, seaport construction, and connectivity, a well as speeding up the construction of the BCIM (Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar) Economic Corridor. REVITALIZING BRICS COOPERATION This year marks the 10th anniversary of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) cooperation mechanism. After 10 years of fast development, the bloc has expanded cooperation and played an active role in promoting global economic growth and improving global governance, Wang said. Xi attended the annual BRICS summit in the western Indian state of Goa on Sunday, and made a five-point proposal for the BRICS nations to join hands in tough times -- building an open world, mapping out a shared development vision, coping with the most pressing global challenges, safeguarding fairness and justice in the international community, and deepening partnerships within the bloc. Xi boosted confidence of BRICS cooperation, and stressed the importance of cultural cooperation among BRICS countries to increase impetus to the mechanism. Xi also attended a dialogue between BRICS and BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) leaders, and called for the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative and the BIMSTEC programs, so as to advance infrastructure construction and connectivity, and strive for common development. Xi's visit successfully implemented China's neighborhood diplomacy featuring amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness by consolidating good neighborliness, pushing the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative with the development strategies of respective countries, strengthening unity and cooperation among emerging markets and developing countries, the Chinese foreign minister concluded. Jerusalem Chief Rabbi HaGaon HaRav Aryeh Stern Shlita sent a letter of chizuk to Aaron and Yonatan Razel regarding the second hakofos in the Nachlaot area of the capital that were delayed by police. As reported by YWN-ISRAEL police arrived and explained the event was taking place in a public area and therefore, a mechitzah is illegal since the law does not permit separating between men and women. In his letter, Rabbi Stern expresses empathy for the situation and praised the fact they performed with a mechitzah, maintaining tznius during the event. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) [PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE] Bchasdei Hashem, a terrorist attack in the Gush Etzion community of Migdal Ohz was prevented during the night as armed Arab children were detected and apprehended in time. The video provided by the IDF spokesman unit shows what the command center saw, the two Arab children approaching the security fence of the community. They were both armed with knives, the knives seen in the accompanying photograph. The suspects, eight-year-olds, told military officials they were dropped off in a van and given knives, told to perpetrate an attack. Being that they are too young to be held responsible, they were returned to the custody of their parents. The minimum age to hold one responsible is 12. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Residents of Amona on Motzei Shabbos protested outside the homes of a number of cabinet ministers on Motzei Shabbos, including the head of the Bayit Yehudi party, Naftali Bennett. The residents reminded the head of the dati leumi party that their homes and community is slated for destruction by the end of the Gregorian year, calling on Bennett to prevent the second destruction of Amona. Bennett came out and met with protestors and spoke of his efforts to push legislation to prevent implementation of the High Court of Justice ruling. Some of the protestors were outside the home of Likud Minister Yariv Levin, who also came out to speak with them. He explained Likud cabinet ministers will not present the passage of Bennetts efforts on behalf of Amona. Likud Minister Miri Regev also met with protestors, explaining she has already spoken with Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and she remains confident it is possible to prevent the destruction of the community by introducing the correct legislation to circumvent the High Court ruling. There have been reports the state plans to request an extension from the High Court but this has not occurred to date and even if it does, it is unlikely an extension will be granted since the demolition order follows several previous extensions. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Most university students in Israel headed back to classroom for the new semester on Sunday, 28 Tishrei with the exception of students from Hebrew University due to a strike. The 23,000 students registered to begin the new academic year at Hebrew University were met with disappointment as the Jerusalem and Rehovot campuses are striking, a strike that is expected to continue into mid-November as negotiations continue between the university and the treasury. Classes will resume earlier if agreement is reached. The university is seeking relief for its 180 NIS million debt, which officials explain is preventing the opening of the new academic year. The treasury has signaled a willingness to provide minimal aid providing the university agrees to its austerity plan but this has not been accepted by university officials. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) There is growing opposition in the community of Reut to the planned construction of a Beit Chabad shul in the community. In fact, 1,800 residents have signed a petition against the shuls. In addition, a Facebook page has been launched to oppose the shuls and residents plan to be out in a main center on Friday to sign additional residents to the petition opposing addition shuls in the secular community. The plan for the new shul was revealed in August and it led to immediate opposition. However, the posting of a sign by the municipality recently calling on persons against the plan to step forward has resulted in increased opposition. Opponents feel that the allocation of a plot for the Chabad shul should be revoked as they feel there is no room for a Beit Chabad in the secular community. They feel there are many other NGOs operating in the community that could use the land but they were not given a chance to compete for it. On the Facebook page, activists explain the opposition must be significant for once the bulldozers begin working it will be too late. Organizers of the opposition are calling for unified opposition to preserve the character of the community. The leaders of the opposition are planning to attend the upcoming community board meeting to express their opposition. They explain their secular community, which numbers 1,600 families, does not require four shulsand therefore the plot allocated for a Beit Chabad can better service other organizations the community was established as a home for career military personnel and we must maintain its character. Reut is home to many current and past Israel Air Force personnel. Kfir Cohen, one of the leaders of the struggle to build the Beit Chabad and head of the district committee explains that they have been davening in a bomb shelter and they are not seeking to add a shul, but are simply seeking to move from a temporary venue to a shul building. Cohen explains the minyan has been in existence and he simply does not feel they should be compelled to live in a bomb shelter. Cohen maintains the committee has acted with total transparency despite accusations to the contrary and the committee is simply looking ahead to the future towards the betterment of the community. He calls on the opponents to step forward and explain their opposition. If they dont want it this too is fine explains Cohen, adding The process of opposition is quite legitimate. I just wish it was a bit less litigious and offensive. City officials explain the district committee received a petition signed by 500 residents of Reut in favor of the shul building. This prompted the city to begin moving ahead with the planned project in line with the desire of residents. In this same framework, if the committee receives opposition, it too will be received and an appropriate decision will be made. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) A FedEx plane caught fire Friday evening while landing at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, authorities said. The plane was arriving from Memphis shortly before 6 p.m. when the fire broke out, Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue spokesman Mike Jachles. The pilots told authorities they believe the left landing gear collapsed on the runway. Both pilots escaped without injury. The fire, which was contained to the left wing and fuel tank, was put out within minutes of the landing, Jachles said. An inspection determined that the cargo appeared to be undamaged. Air traffic controllers in Fort Lauderdale issued a ground stop after the flight, and no flights were allowed to leave for a time. The airports south runway reopened about 7 p.m., but the north runway remained closed for investigation. FedEx issued a statement that the company was cooperating with authorities. The National Transportation Safety Board is opening an investigation into a FedEx plane that caught fire after its landing gear collapsed. Christopher ONeill, a spokesman for the board, said a team of five investigators are being sent to Fort Lauderdale. Earlier Friday, eight people reported minor injuries after an American Airlines aircraft caught fire at Chicagos OHare International Airport. (AP) China to launch 2nd national census on pollution sources From:Xinhua | 2016-10-28 09:40 BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- China's second national census on the sources of pollution will begin in December 2017, according to a State Council circular released Wednesday. The census will target industrial, agricultural and residential establishments and review the efficiency of centralized pollution control and treatment facilities, according to the circular, which was signed by Premier Li Keqiang. The State Council established a working group under the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) to oversee the census. The first census began in 2006. This second census is expected to be finished by the end of 2018 and the results released in 2019, according to am MEP statement. Environmental authorities must have an accurate understanding of where, when and how the environment in China is being polluted, so corresponding policies and measures can be designed to suit each situation, the statement said. To ensure the accuracy of the census, in addition to employing traditional methods, remote sensing satellites and drones will be used to collect data. Anyone refusing to report on or falsify their pollution figures will be held legally responsible, the circular stated. In August, the central government submitted a draft environment tax law to the top legislature for its first reading, which proposed a nationwide levy on air, water, noise and solid pollutants from business activities. A $250 million drinking water tunnel from Brooklyn to Staten Island that had been delayed by Superstorm Sandy has been activated. Mayor Bill de Blasio said Saturday that the tunnel is a critical backup that can deliver up to 150 million gallons of safe drinking water per day to Staten Island residents in the aftermath of a disaster. Called a siphon, the tunnel runs under New York Harbor and replaces two, nearly 100-year-old siphons. Staten Islanders use about 50 million gallons of water daily thats carries from upstate New York. That will continue to be the main water supply for residents. Construction on the tunnel was suspended due to damage from Sandy. When work resumed in 2014, new measures were put in to prevent future storm damage. (AP) Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) warned motorists to check their license status after penning a letter to the Department of Motor Vehicles inquiring about the steps taken when a motorist fails to respond to a moving violation. The letter comes on the heels of several complaints being lodged, with motorists claiming they were arrested for unknowingly driving with a suspended license. Within the letter, Assemblyman Hikind requested clarification as to how the motorist is notified once given a violation, what happens should the motorist not appear at the hearing and what kind of grace period (if any) is granted. The DMV responded, saying, for motorists driving in NYC and Rochester, a failure to appear at the hearing does not result in an immediate suspension of a license. Eight days after missing a hearing, the motorist is notified by letter of a pending drivers license suspension, and then has three weeks to answer. If the driver fails to respond, they are notified by mail that they have been default convicted after 30 days from the suspension date, and the suspension remains in place. Outside of NYC and Rochester, the 1,400 municipalities are required to wait 60 days for a response before they can submit a suspension order to the DMV. At that time, a notice will be automatically generated and mailed the following business day to the address of record for the motorist. The driver then has 37 days to respond to the court. The suspended motorist does not receive a separate mailing from either the DMV or the municipal court that issued the suspension order notifying them that their license has been suspended after the initial mailing. It is imperative that we remain aware of the status on our license at all times, Assemblyman Hikind said. We must take precautionary measures and ensure that were in good standing. Until we are notified that the violation has been resolved, it is the responsibility of the motorist to be proactive. If a motorist legally changes their name or moves, they must notify the DMV immediately. Added Hikind: Driving with a suspended license is dangerous, against the law and will lead to an automatic arrest. Its as simple as that. We have the tools to check the status of our license online at the DMV website. I encourage all motorists to use the tools provided to ensure theyre in good standing. Below is the link to the DMV website where motorists can go to monitor the status of their license: https://dmv.ny.gov/mydmv/mydmv (YWN Desk NYC) As Hillary Clinton presses for a return to the White House, so, too, does the Clinton inner circle the family of aides and confidants that have at times strained the loyalty, patience and political judgment of the figures at its center. The Democratic presidential nominee is in the middle of one such moment. A little more than a week from Election Day, her campaign has been rocked by a controversy sparked anew by the exploits of her closest aides estranged husband. It is, on one level, the most surprising of October surprises an almost unbelievable collision of the tabloid tale with the stranger-than-the-tabloids presidential election. But for those whove long been wary of the company the Clintons keep, it was a reminder of the downside of both Bill and Hillary Clintons famed loyalty and a reluctance to distance themselves from drama bound to do them political harm. The Clinton campaign declared Saturday it was firmly behind Huma Abedin, the longtime aide and Hillary Clinton confidante whose emails showed up on a computer seized by law enforcement officials investigating husband Anthony Weiners online contact with a minor. The FBI decision to review the new emails, as part of its investigation into Clintons private email server, breathed new life into Clintons own email woes. We of course stand behind her, Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta told reporters, saying Abedin has completely and voluntarily complied with and cooperated with the investigation. Abedin is the best-known member of Clintons insular band of loyalists. Glamorous and fashionable, she has long been a recognizable figure among Clinton supporters and political opponents. Republican nominee Donald Trump was perhaps the first to raise the concern that Abedins marriage might be a problem for Clinton, tweeting more than a year ago that Weiner was a major security risk as a collector of info. Abedin was perpetually at Clintons side at the State Department, a gatekeeper and adviser to the nations top diplomat. Clintons team defended her unusual employment arrangement at the time, in which Abedin was paid by the Clinton Foundation, a consulting firm called Teneo and the State Department all at once. Clinton stood by her when Weiners first online scandal cost him his seat in Congress, and when his second imploded his bid for New York mayor. When Abedin announced her separation from Weiner earlier this year, it was Clintons campaign that sent her statement to reporters. Abedin is only one of the longtime Clinton crew that has caused headaches in the final stretch. The trove of emails hacked from Podestas account and published by WikiLeaks has offered new detail on friction, alliances and maneuvering in the Clintons orbit. The correspondence is particularly striking as speculation swirls about who will be brought into a Clinton administration and who will be kept at a distance. Among the emails was a memo from Bill Clintons longtime aide Doug Band, a co-founder of Teneo, detailing how he mixed fundraising for the Clinton Foundation with his personal consulting business. He labeled the web of connections Bill Clinton, Inc., a moniker on which Republicans have seized as evidence of the Clintons using their political status for personal gain. Other emails showed the tensions between the new and old circles of Clinton confidants, as a cast of new campaign aides moved their way into the inner circle. Philippe Reines, Clintons hot-tempered and foul-mouthed former spokesman and fierce defender of Clinton in the Senate and at the State Department, in particular, was shown to be grappling with the new regime. In a March 2015 email to Podesta, Reines said it was a bitter pill to swallow knowing he would not be by Clintons side for her second White House run. My participation should be dialed way back down to where you decided it to be, with clear boundaries, which honestly, is where I need it to be for myself, Reines wrote. But, as often happens in Clintons circle, Reines found his way back. He stepped in to play the role of Donald Trump in a series of practice debates, winning lavish praise from other aides for his spot-on portrayal of the Republican businessman. Clinton herself has given Reines a cameo in her stump speeches, referring to him as the young man who helped prepare her to take on Trump. Reines made an actual appearance with the campaign on Saturday, joining the team of traveling aides. Abedin, who has been a regular fixture on the Clinton plane, stayed behind in New York. Clinton aides said she planned to return soon. (AP) The following is via The Hill: A former FBI official said Sunday that Bill and Hillary Clinton are part of a crime family and argued top officials hindered the investigation into Hillary Clintons private email server while she was secretary of State. During a radio interview with John Catsimatidis, former assistant FBI director James Kallstrom heaped praise on Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump before taking aim at the Clintons. The Clintons, thats a crime family, basically, Kallstrom said. Its like organized crime. I mean the Clinton Foundation is a cesspool. Kallstrom, best known for leading the investigation into the explosion of TWA flight 800 in the late 90s, said that Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, was a pathological liar. He also blasted Attorney General Loretta Lynch, claiming that she impeded the investigation into Clintons private server. The problem here is this investigation was never a real investigation, he said. Thats the problem. They never had a grand jury empanelled, and the reason they never had a grand jury empanelled, Im sure, is Loretta Lynch would not go along with that. The Clintons, thats a crime family, basically, Kallstrom said. Its like organized crime. I mean the Clinton Foundation is a cesspool. Kallstrom, best known for leading the investigation into the explosion of TWA flight 800 in the late 90s, said that Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, was a pathological liar. He also blasted Attorney General Loretta Lynch, claiming that she impeded the investigation into Clintons private server. The problem here is this investigation was never a real investigation, he said. Thats the problem. They never had a grand jury empanelled, and the reason they never had a grand jury empanelled, Im sure, is Loretta Lynch would not go along with that. (Source: The Hill) Three border policemen sustained light injuries in the vehicular ramming attack near Beit Omer in the Hebron district on Sunday, 28 Tishrei, at 16:50. The border police were quick to react Baruch Hashem, shooting and neutralizing the 23-year-old terrorist, a resident of Beit Omer. The wounded policemen are recuperating in Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, all listed in light condition. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem/Photo Credit: Israel Police Spokesman Unit) Funeral services are set for a New York state trooper who died after being struck by a car while assisting a trucker who had stopped in a highway median. Trooper Timothy Pratt had just started his shift early Wednesday morning when he stopped to assist a tractor-trailer driver who had stopped in front of the trooper station in Wilton where Pratt worked. Officials say Pratt stepped into the path of a car after talking to the truck driver. The 55-year-old Pratt worked as a road patrol trooper for most of his 30-year career. The funeral is Monday morning at a South Glens Falls church. Pratt, an Air Force veteran, will be buried at Saratoga National Cemetery. (AP) The Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee today defended FBI Director James Comeys decision to announce that his agency is reviewing newly-found messages in connection to the agencys investigation of Hillary Clintons use of a private email server as secretary of state. Comey has come under fire from the Clinton campaign and other Democrats for his letter to congressional leaders on Friday announcing the review of the newly-discovered emails. The emails were found through a separate FBI investigation of former Congressman Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and other top Justice Department officials discouraged Comey from alerting Congress of the unexpected discovery of the emails given the closeness of Election Day on Nov. 8 and department protocols designed to avoid the appearance of interference in an election.But House Judiciary Chairman Robert Goodlatte of Virginia said on ABCs This Week that the FBIs review of the newly-discovered emails is a stunning new development and announcing it was necessary. Goodlatte said he believes the FBI director is aware of what he described as controversy within the FBI and Justice Department over Comeys earlier announcement, in July, that no criminal charges were warranted in the Clinton email case. I think that he is very conscious of the controversy that has existed in the FBI and in the Justice Department over the decision not to move forward with criminal charges in the matter, Goodlatte told ABCs George Stephanopoulos. But he defended the new announcement as an important update to that decision. Given the fact that Mrs. Clinton has been traveling around the country for three-and-a-half months saying that the FBI has cleared her of wrongdoing, that when there is new, and I believe, substantial information available, why wouldnt he tell the American people that this is still under investigation? However, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, who appeared in the same segment on This Week, called Comeys announcement of the email review a terrible error in judgment. I think this was a terrible error in judgment by the director to release this kind of ambiguous letter, Rep. Adam Schiff of California said on ABCs This Week. That kind of an ambiguity bomb this close to the election was a serious error, he said. It clearly wasnt in the public interest, Schiff added. Schiff said Comeys announcement of the review of the newly-found emails doesnt change that fundamental conclusion by the agency against moving forward with a criminal case considering that the FBI director said he doesnt know if the new emails are significant to the Clinton email probe. If the director cant clean up this mess, and I hope he will try, I think he ought to acknowledge that he made a serious mistake, and underscore once again that theres nothing that alters that core conclusion he reached in July, Schiff said. Goodlatte said he and the House Judiciary Committees top Democrat, John Conyers of Michigan, were briefed by Comey on Saturday about the review of the newly-found emails. We both encouraged him to make sure that the American people have as much information as possible before they have to make a decision on November 8th, Goodlatte said. He did not give us any response in terms of what more he could say, the judiciary committee chairman added. But he certainly took that under advisement. (Source: ABC News) Shas party leader Interior Minister Aryeh Deri has resigned from Knesset but will continue serving as a cabinet minister. This permits bringing and additional Shas MK into Knesset to take Deri seat as an MK. That seat will be filled by Shas representative in Jerusalem City Hall, Michael Malchieli. Deris decision appears to be motivated by a need to refresh the ranks of his party and his resignation is likely to be the beginning as others may be following suit. The first such move in Shas in the current Knesset was by Deputy Interior Minister Meshulam Nahari, permitting the entry of Michael Guetta as a Shas MK. On the downside, in the event the coalition falls, Deri and Meshulam will be out as they will not have their Knesset seats to fall back on. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Minister of Agriculture Uri Ariel heads the Ichud Leumi faction in the Bayit Yehudi party. Ariel on Sunday announced we are not in your pocket, in his comments directed at Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, sending a clear message that until the matter of the Amona expulsion is resolved, his faction will not back the state budget. Ariel made his comments to a conference of Ichud Leumi, warning without a solution to the scheduled expulsion of residents from Amona, there would be justification to create a coalition crisis. Ariel made it clear, that Amona would be the straw that breaks the coalitions back and if legislation is not set into place to circumvent the High Court of Justice eviction order, the coalition would pay the price. He added that his support for the state budget will be contingent to resolving the Amona matter. Ariel also addressed the so-called two-state solution, adding Israel would remain the only sovereign authority between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River, rejecting any attempt to back the establishment of the State of Palestine. He clarified that his remarks should not be perceived as a threat, clarifying these are the issues that the partys voters voted for them and they will stand firm as promised to voters. He promised to continue fighting for the Kosel, Shabbos and the right of Jews to visit Har Habayis, citing all of these are central to Am Yisrael. Gedolei Yisrael over the generations and the Chief Rabbinate of Israel prohibit visiting Har Habayis (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) In his remarks to the Ichud Leumi party conference on Sunday, 28 Tishrei, Bayit Yehudi party leader Minister Naftali Bennett called for annexing Jewish communities throughout Yehuda and Shomron into Israel proper as was done in the Golan Heights. Bennett explained how he and his family visited Gush Etzion last erev Shabbos, detailing some of the ongoing settlement efforts that are being carried out by the Women in Green organization. He praised the ongoing efforts to protect and maintain outposts that have yet to be recognized by the government. Bennett proclaimed that today, fifty years since the liberation of Yehuda and Shomron, the time has come to annex them as an integral part of the State of Israel. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Music China: German top-level piano brand to enter China By:Jiang Wenran | From:english.eastday.com | 2016-10-28 10:01 Shanghai, October 28- Music China 2016 kicked off recently, and will last to October 29. The event enjoys larger exhibition scale in comparison with the previous year, with nearly 1,900 Chinese and foreign enterprises from 30 countries and regions in 10 pavilions. During the exhibition, Steingraeber & SOhne from Germany, one of the world's best piano brand was announced to enter the Chinese market, bringing wonderful master-class products to Chinese consumers. According to the brands senior executive, established in 1820, Steingraeber & S?hne is an old brand. It is also the world's only remaining 100% handmade piano, known as the Hermes in piano. Besides, the Germany company is planning to send their German engineers and professional and technical personnel to give training to technical personnel and workers in China factory, in order to provide excellent-quality pianos. The Vaad Rabbonim for Shabbos is planning to convene on Tuesday, 1 Rosh Chodesh Marcheshvan and has invited representatives of El Al to attend the meeting. The meeting will be chaired by Rabbi Yitzchak Goldknoff, the head of the vaad. Speaking with Noam Zeigman of Kol Berama Radio, Rabbi Goldknoff explained El Al representatives will be asked to explain why on this past erev Shabbos, 26 Tishrei, a flight from NYC and from Switzerland landed in Ben-Gurion Airport after candle lighting time while El Al reported the flight that originated in New York City landed minutes before candle lighting. The El Al representatives will also be requested to explain why they report not operating on Shabbos while the Ports Authority shows El Al Shabbos flights. El Al maintains it is not operating the flights in question. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) The manslaughter trial of IDF Sgt. Elor Azariya continues in a Jaffa Military Court. Azariya is facing manslaughter charges for shooting a wounded terrorist dead shortly after the terrorist wounded soldiers in a terrorist stabbing attack in Hebron on Purim. The hunger strike protest will coincide with closing arguments in the trial. Activists whom have been working on the soldiers behalf have called for the day of fast as the case winds down. The protest will be held outside the military courthouse while the court is in session on Tuesday, 1 Rosh Chodesh Marcheshvan 5777. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Health Minister Yaakov Litzman on Sunday announced his party will link its support for the state budget to a government commitment that a minimum of ten percent of public housing is allocated exclusively for the chareidi tzibur. Litzman explained his partys position during an interview on Kol Berama Radio, explaining he and his colleagues are less than pleased with the Machir LaMishtachen project which permits anyone to qualify for an apartment. This means a non-frum person can obtain an apartment in an area that should be exclusively chareidi. Litzman cites the ongoing machlokes in Jerusalems Kiryat Yovel as an example of what will occur if non-frum and chareidi residents are living side-by-side as they clash due to an obvious difference in agendas regarding infrastructure and lifestyle. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) A talmid of HaGaon HaRav Shmuel Auerbach Shlita has been arrested by authorities for failing to register for military service. The arrest was made on the night between Sunday and Monday, 29 Tishrei. It is reported the talmid learned in the past in Yeshivas Shaare Tevuna, and upon instructions from Rav Auerbach, he did not report as required when receiving ones first draft notice. The talmid was arraigned before a military court on Monday afternoon. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Three Pennsylvania residents accused of trying to drive into New York City with a cache of weapons were arraigned Monday in New Jersey on multiple charges. John Cramsey, 50, and Dean Smith, 53, both of Zionsville, and Kimberly Arendt, 29, of Lehighton, formally pleaded not guilty to the weapons charges contained in the 63-count indictment. All three remain free on bail. They were stopped at the entrance of the Holland Tunnel in Jersey City in June in a truck that had gun-rights decals on it. Police say the vehicle had a cracked windshield. Their lawyers argued Monday that the search that uncovered the weapons was illegal and they plan to file motions to suppress the evidence. They claim police lacked probable cause for the traffic stop and pulled Cramseys truck over because it was adorned with cross-hairs and pro-Second Amendment decals indicating the passengers might be gun-rights advocates. Cramsey, whose daughter died of a heroin overdose in February, posted online shortly before the arrest that he was heading to New York to rescue a 16-year-old girl whose friend had overdosed. The indictment accuses Cramsey, Smith and Arendt of possessing handguns and a shotgun without the proper permits and having knives under inappropriate circumstances. (AP) Editorial Comment HIV and Aids has ravaged nations, Zimbabwe included, killing millions of mostly the productive age groups. Over the years, researchers have been working on a vaccine which would halt the rampant infections. And now finally some good news: A promising African-led clinical trial PreVacc is underway and if successful, many lives will be saved with just a few shots. Zimbabwe will be one of the countries where the trial will be conducted. A vaccine that can prevent infection would condition the immune system to respond to HIV by making antibodies that can arrest the virus and stop it from infecting cells, or by promoting other immune responses that kill the virus altogether. Although no vaccine is 100% effective, finding an effective one is critical for the HIV response. - Advertisement - The magnitude of the disease cannot be underestimated with statistics showing that 1,8 million people became infected with HIV in 2017, while 36,9 million people were living with HIV and 21,7 million receiving anti-retroviral therapy. Even with the scale-up of highly-effective prevention and treatment tools, the decline rate of new infections is not adequate to bring the HIV epidemic to an end. For countries like Zimbabwe, despite dramatic improvements in access to anti-retroviral therapy this is still an expensive option, given the many challenges in providing affordable medication to those that are in need. There are perennial shortages of anti-retroviral drugs as well as supportive mechanisms and equipment. Viral load machines in public hospitals are not working and given the current price hikes of basic food commodities, many people living with Aids may not get the appropriate nutritional needs. Good nutrition is a key component for a successful treatment plan. Nutritional status and the progression of HIV are strongly interrelated. HIV infection increases the bodys energy needs while it diminishes appetite and decreases the bodys ability to digest food and absorb nutrients. This leads to malnutrition, which in turn accelerates the HIV infection. This scenario is an indication that a vaccine is needed, especially for the adolescents. A model developed by the International Aids Vaccine Initiative has estimated that a vaccine that can stop 70% of infections would reduce new infections by 44% in the first 10 years after the projected introduction in 2027. By 2070, a vaccine that was 70% effective would reduce new infections by 78%. The cost of administering a vaccine is substantially lower than providing PrEP or HIV treatment. By preventing new infections and reducing the cost of prevention, an HIV vaccine would improve the sustainability of the HIV response. Like this: Like Loading... Do you really know what you're invested in? You could be one of the millions who invest in funds backing tobacco, alcohol, gambling and the arms trade - and may have done very well out of them. That profit, however, may leave you feeling uncomfortable. So should you back a more ethical investing style? Good Money Week, which started yesterday, is now in its ninth year and campaigns to improve the visibility of ethical and sustainable financial products. Standing in contrast with that, however, is research by Fund Expert that claims investors would be better off using unfettered funds and donating a portion of the higher proceeds from it to an ethical cause. Green shoots: Some ethical funds positively screen for environmentally friendly companies What is ethical investing? Ethical, green, or socially responsible investing means different things to different people, but these funds have historically tried to screen out many of these 'vice' stocks. More recently, ethical funds have introduced positive screening - attempting to actively back companies that are bringing about positive social change. The UK's ethical investment sector grew to 11.9billion in August, up from 10billion the same time last year. But they still make up only 1.1 per cent of total funds under management - a proportion that hasn't changed over the last decade. According to Good Money Week research, while 45 per cent of the population say they want to make at least some positive difference with their money, just over half of the UK population don't even know that ethical or sustainable funds exist. For that reason, this year the initiative is pushing for the 'kitemark' label to identify financial products which operate in a sustainable or ethical way - a sort of 'fair trade' label for funds. Simon Howard is chief executive of UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association, which is coordinating Good Money Week. He said: 'Not enough people in the UK know ethical and sustainable options exist for their pensions and savings and not enough are ready to buy without a mechanism such as a kitemark-style label to sort the wheat from the chaff.' Can ethical funds do the business? But whether or not the public know about them, can ethical funds keep pace with their unscreened rivals? Research conducted by investing platform Fund Expert suggests the answer is no. The firm calculated the 'feel-good' cost of ethical investing by comparing funds with their non-ethical rivals. It decided that investors could be wise to choose better returns elsewhere and then donate some of their higher profits. The 'Feel good' cost of investing in ethical funds Sector Top Ethical fund Return Top Unfettered fund Return 'Feel good' cost UK All Companies Kames Ethical 216,000 MFM Slater Growth 342,000 126,000 Global EdenTree Amity International 241,000 L&G Global Health& pharma index 323,000 82,000 Sterling Corporate bond Rathbone Ethical 170,350 M&G Strategic Corporate Bond 205,000 34,650 Source: Fundexpert.co.uk, the non advised arm of Dennehy Weller & Co, using Investment Association data on funds over 50million in size. Figures correct as of 30/09/16, assuming 100,000 invested over 10 years. According to their data, there are currently 51 ethical funds across 14 sectors that are 50million in size or bigger. However, they focused on the 35 that are bigger that have more than 10 years of performance data, which span only nine sectors. Just three ethical offerings have made it in to the top performing 20 per cent of all funds over that decade: Henderson Global Care Growth, EdenTree Amity International and Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Sustainability. The UK All Companies sector has 13 ethical funds, the most of any sector. Kames Ethical Equity was the best performing, up 116 per cent over the decade. But the top overall performer, MFM Slater Growth, had grown by 242 per cent - almost twice as much. Level playing field? Many ethical funds won't invest in oil companies The team at Fund Expert said: 'For those who insist on buying ethical funds, do so with care. For example, many such funds still have an emphasis on more cyclical stocks, which means they can quickly swing from top to bottom of the performance tables.' But Louie French, alternatives fund analyst at Tilney Bestinvest, says comparing ethical funds to unsuitable benchmarks is part of the problem. He says: 'In the past, funds such as Jupiter Ecology have had their performance compared to mainstream benchmarks such as the MSCI World, despite having little in common with the peer group. 'This can have a negative effect on the relative track record of funds and how they are perceived. This is particularly true when parts of the benchmark that ethical funds have little exposure to - such as oil - outperform.' 'For the sector to develop further and become more mainstream it needs to become more consistently transparent over what these funds invest in and how they are defined.' Is it all about awareness? Ethical fund providers insist there is a growing demand for their products, despite this scepticism from others in the industry. Triodos Bank, which was founded in the Netherlands, has 50,000 UK customers and over 1billion in assets under management. It says six out of 10 of its survey respondents believed everyone should be offered socially responsible, or ethical and sustainable options as standard in auto-enrolment workplace pensions, according to research undertaken for Good Money Week. The challenger bank is also one of those pushing for the kitemark label after its survey revealed 47 per cent admitted they didn't know what they were invested in. Way forward? The Triodos Sustainable Pioneer fund invests in electric car company Tesla Huw Davies, head of retail banking at Triodos Bank UK said: 'We see a growing awareness amongst investors that their money has an impact on the world in which we live through how it is used by banks and funds. 'We want to call on all banks and financial providers to be more transparent and open about where they invest people's money, so that investors can make informed choices.' The bank says it only finances and lends to organisations it considers to be for societal good areas such as organic farming, renewable energy, social housing, the arts and elderly care. Stubbing it out: Axa won't invest in tobacco However, Triodos' retail investment funds The Triodos Sustainable Equity Fund and the Triodos Sustainable Pioneer fund are underperforming their benchmarks over one and three years. Yet, those who back ethical investing argue that longer-term thinking is needed. There are two key changes that could prove to be a boon to the ethical investment sector: changing demographics and increasing sophistication. As a younger, more socially conscious generation of millennials starts to grow their disposable income and thus their investing potential, it could be that funds in general start to clean up their act. Darius McDermott, managing director of Chelsea Financial Services, cites Axa's recent decision to drop tobacco stocks from all of its portfolios as a sign that change is afoot. He says: 'Historically these funds have had the word 'ethical' in the title and focused purely on negative screening - filtering out companies that do unethical things like supplying arms, tobacco or alcohol. 'Today we are seeing more positive screening in the mix- so fund managers actively looking for companies that are doing good things as well. 'This is also becoming more of a core process for all funds - even "unethical" ones - as they have seen that companies that behave responsibly towards their employees, the environment, etc, tend to perform better and also treat shareholders better!' Jane Sydenham is an investment director at Rathbones, which has an Ethical Bond fund for retail investors and also a dedicated ethical and sustainable investment team, and Rathbone Greenbank. She agrees that good corporate governance has become more mainstream. 'There has been a significant change over the past decade whereby corporate governance has become embedded into the corporate culture of companies. To some extent, all clients have therefore benefited from this process within their portfolios and have become more ethical without knowing it.' Sydenham observes that younger clients have a taste for sustainable investing - but expect to get paid for it. 'Many investors and particularly millennials are not generally willing to sacrifice return for principles. 'Instead, many are attracted to ethical trends such as alternative energy because they see significant investment opportunities as these areas cross into the mainstream, and it is more likely for a client to request a given percentage of their portfolio be managed on an ethical basis, rather than its entirety.' RBS RECKONING The Royal Bank of Scotland will be cleared of claims it systematically sought to destroy businesses, insiders have suggested. An investigation into practices by the lenders controversial global restructuring group after the financial crisis is set to be published by the Financial Conduct Authority. Weathering the storm: RBSs turnaround unit was supposed to help struggling businesses stay afloat - but there have been claims it instead seized their assets RBSs turnaround unit was supposed to help struggling businesses stay afloat but there have been claims it instead seized their assets to boost its own ailing balance sheet. MINER SPLIT Mining giant Anglo American is reportedly considering a 2bn spin-off of its South African coal and iron business. The sale would allow it to focus on its diamond, copper and platinum operations. It follows shareholder calls for a break-up of the company. OIL FEARS Oil and gas investors will be keeping a close eye on BP and Royal Dutch Shell this week as the rivals both post third-quarter results. Business is still looking bleak for major oil firms, which continue to struggle to break even in a low-price environment. While oil prices have almost doubled since hitting 12-year lows at the beginning of 2016, most producers still cannot cover their costs at $50 a barrel. HIRE DRAMA Machinery rental firm Hewden is said to be urgently seeking backers after a business downturn squeezed its cash reserves. The firm which is also seeking to refinance 190m of debt employs more than 1,000 people across the country. It is working with Deloitte on a rescue plan and said it was optimistic a solution could be found. FRACKING LOSS Cuadrilla Resources has posted a 15m loss as the controversial fracking firm struggles with red tape. Fashion giant Next is expected to report a fall in sales this week as families choose restaurants over retail. The High Street is suffering from unseasonably warm weather, increasing internet competition and changing shopping habits. And although Next which reports its third-quarter results on Wednesday is the biggest operator in the industry, analysts do not believe it is immune. Experts at Santander are expecting the retailer to announce a 4.5 per cent fall in Next brand sales and a 7.6 per cent drop in shop takings. They believe performance in its directory business will be unchanged. Analyst Rebecca McClellan said that prospects for this pending third-quarter sales update are inevitably weak. Next boss Lord Wolfson has warned that fashion retailers may feel as if they are walking up the down escalator this year. He has also claimed Next could be forced to hike its prices by 5 per cent due to the fall in the pound. Britains biggest ever tech failure has triggered a bitter transatlantic row over what went wrong. At its height, Powa Technologies was feted by former Prime Minister David Cameron as a jewel in the nations computing crown. It was a rare British unicorn a tech business with a value of more than 2bn but it collapsed into administration earlier this year amid claims of profligacy by chief executive Dan Wagner (pictured below) as it became clear the mobile commerce companys rhetoric had exceeded its reality. Now a spat has developed between Wagner and American investor Wellington Management over who is to blame for the companys demise. The former boss claims that Wellington which ploughed 161m into the firm between 2013 and 2015 sought to wrest the company away from him in an ill-judged power grab. Wagner, 53, claims that board member Ben White emailed Wellington to say investing any more money would be a total waste of time. Two days later, Wellington called in administrators White and Wellington then reportedly took control of the firms flagship product PowaTag, which allows consumers to pay for goods using a mobile phone. Wagner said the company was dealing with its issue up to the point that Ben White and his co-conspirators provided Wellington with an alternative option. Earlier this month, he alleged he had been targeted by enemies. My outspoken and brash and controversial approach to running my business is not well-liked by the establishment, Wagner said. Wellington disputed his version of events, and a spokesman said the fund was at all times focused on serving the best interests of our clients in the face of what turned out to be a failed business model. White also denied the claims. Wagner previously ran a business called MAID, later known as Dialog Corp, which was sold after the dotcom crash when its shares plunged 95 per cent. It was at this firm the entrepreneur earned his unorthodox reputation, once wearing a Donald Duck waistcoat to a press conference. His flamboyant approach continued at Powa, which was launched to great fanfare in 2007. Stories emerged of wild parties, Wagner drove a Bentley to work and in January this year he sent staff a bizarre email of himself dressed as David Bowie. But despite paying staff more than 25m, the firm is alleged to have only had 4.8m in sales. Wagner claimed to have signed a Chinese deal with limitless potential, while 1,200 firms had given him their backing. It emerged these had signed letters of intent, not contracts meaning they were not committed to anything. Your Ultimate Investing Toolkit Sign up for MarketBeat All Access to gain access to MarketBeat's full suite of research tools: Portfolio Monitoring Top Stock Lists Premium Reports Stock Screeners Live News Feed Premium Support Free for your first month. The following companies are subsidiares of Pfizer: AH Robins LLC, AHP Holdings B.V., AHP Manufacturing B.V., Agouron Pharmaceuticals LLC, Alacer, Alpharma Holdings LLC, Alpharma Pharmaceuticals LLC, Alpharma Specialty Pharma LLC, Alpharma USHP LLC, American Food Industries LLC, Anacor Pharmaceuticals, Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc., Angiosyn, Array BioPharma, Ayerst-Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC, BIND Therapeutics Inc., BINESA 2002 S.L., Bamboo Therapeutics, Bamboo Therapeutics Inc., Baxter International - Marketed Vaccines, BioRexis, Bioren, Bioren LLC, Blue Whale Re Ltd., C.E. Commercial Holdings C.V., C.E. Commercial Investments C.V., C.P. Pharmaceuticals International C.V., CICL Corporation, COC I Corporation, Catapult Genetics, Coley Pharmaceutical GmbH, Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Coley Pharmaceutical Group Inc., Continental Pharma Inc., Covx, Covx Technologies Ireland Limited, Cyanamid Inter-American Corporation, Cyanamid de Argentina S.A., Cyanamid de Colombia S.A., Distribuidora Mercantil Centro Americana S.A., Encysive Pharmaceuticals, Encysive Pharmaceuticals Inc., Esperion LUV Development Inc., Esperion Therapeutics, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals Inc., Farminova Produtos Farmaceuticos de Inovacao Lda., Farmogene Productos Farmaceuticos Lda, Ferrosan A/S, Ferrosan International A/S, Ferrosan S.R.L., FoldRx Pharmaceuticals Inc., Foldrx Pharmaceuticals, Fort Dodge Manufatura Ltda., G. D. Searle & Co. Limited, G. D. Searle International Capital LLC, G. D. Searle LLC, GI Europe Inc., GI Japan Inc., GenTrac Inc., Genetics Institute LLC, Greenstone LLC, Haptogen Limited, Hospira, Hospira (China) Enterprise Management Co. Ltd., Hospira Adelaide Pty Ltd, Hospira Aseptic Services Limited, Hospira Australia Pty Ltd, Hospira Benelux BVBA, Hospira Chile Limitada, Hospira Deutschland GmbH, Hospira Enterprises B.V., Hospira France SAS, Hospira Healthcare B.V., Hospira Healthcare Corporation, Hospira Healthcare India Private Limited, Hospira Holdings (S.A.) Pty Ltd, Hospira Inc., Hospira Invicta S.A., Hospira Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, Hospira Ireland Sales Limited, Hospira Japan G.K., Hospira Limited, Hospira Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Hospira NZ Limited, Hospira Nordic AB, Hospira Philippines Inc., Hospira Portugal LDA, Hospira Produtos Hospitalares Ltda., Hospira Pte. Ltd., Hospira Pty Limited, Hospira Puerto Rico LLC, Hospira Singapore Pte Ltd, Hospira UK Limited, Hospira Worldwide LLC, Hospira Zagreb d.o.o., ICAgen, Idun Pharmaceuticals, Industrial Santa Agape S.A., InnoPharma, InnoPharma Inc., International Affiliated Corporation LLC, JMI-Daniels Pharmaceuticals Inc., John Wyeth & Brother Limited, Kiinteisto oy Espoon Pellavaniementie 14, King Pharmaceuticals Holdings LLC, King Pharmaceuticals LLC, King Pharmaceuticals Research and Development LLC, Korea Pharma Holding Company Limited, Laboratoires Pfizer S.A., Laboratorios Parke Davis S.L., Laboratorios Pfizer Ltda., Laboratorios Wyeth LLC, Laboratorios Wyeth S.A., Laboratorios Pfizer Lda., MTG Divestitures LLC, Mayne Pharma IP Holdings (Euro) Pty Ltd, Medivation, Medivation Field Solutions LLC, Medivation LLC, Medivation Neurology LLC, Medivation Prostate Therapeutics LLC, Medivation Services LLC, Medivation Technologies LLC, Meridian Medical Technologies Inc., Meridian Medical Technologies Limited, Monarch Pharmaceuticals LLC, Neusentis Limited, NextWave Pharmaceuticals, NextWave Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, P-D Co. LLC, PAH USA IN8 LLC, PF Americas Holding C.V., PF Asia Manufacturing B.V., PF PR Holdings C.V., PF PRISM C.V., PF PRISM Holdings S.a.r.l., PF Prism S.a.r.l., PFE Holdings G.K., PFE PHAC Holdings 1 LLC, PFE Pfizer Holdings 1 LLC, PFE Wyeth Holdings LLC, PFE Wyeth-Ayerst (Asia) LLC, PHILCO Holdings S.a r.l., PHIVCO Corp., PHIVCO Holdco S.a r.l., PHIVCO Luxembourg S.a r.l., PN Mexico LLC, PT. Pfizer Parke Davis, Parke Davis & Company LLC, Parke Davis Limited, Parke Davis Productos Farmaceuticos Lda, Parke-Davis Manufacturing Corp., Parkedale Pharmaceuticals Inc., Peak Enterprises LLC, Pfizer, Pfizer (China) Research and Development Co. Ltd., Pfizer (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Pfizer (Perth) Pty Limited, Pfizer (Thailand) Limited, Pfizer (Wuhan) Research and Development Co. Ltd., Pfizer AB, Pfizer AG, Pfizer AS, Pfizer Africa & Middle East for Pharmaceuticals Veterinarian Products & Chemicals S.A.E., Pfizer Anti-Infectives AB, Pfizer ApS, Pfizer Asia Manufacturing Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Asia Pacific Pte Ltd., Pfizer Atlantic Holdings S.a.r.l., Pfizer Australia Holdings B.V., Pfizer Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Pfizer Australia Investments Pty. Ltd., Pfizer Australia Pty Limited, Pfizer B.V., Pfizer BH D.o.o., Pfizer Baltic Holdings B.V., Pfizer Biofarmaceutica Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Pfizer Biologics (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd, Pfizer Biologics Ireland Holdings Limited, Pfizer Biotech Corporation, Pfizer Bolivia S.A., Pfizer Canada Inc., Pfizer CentreSource Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Chile S.A., Pfizer Cia. Ltda., Pfizer Colombia Spinco I LLC, Pfizer Commercial Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Commercial Holdings TRAE Kft., Pfizer Commercial TRAE Trading Kft., Pfizer Consumer Healthcare AB, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare GmbH, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare Ltd., Pfizer Consumer Manufacturing Italy S.r.l., Pfizer Corporation, Pfizer Corporation Austria Gesellschaft m.b.H., Pfizer Corporation Hong Kong Limited, Pfizer Croatia d.o.o., Pfizer Deutschland GmbH, Pfizer Development LP, Pfizer Development Services (UK) Limited, Pfizer Domestic Ventures Limited, Pfizer Dominicana S.R.L, Pfizer ESP Pty Ltd, Pfizer East India B.V., Pfizer Eastern Investments B.V., Pfizer Egypt S.A.E., Pfizer Enterprise Holdings B.V., Pfizer Enterprises LLC, Pfizer Enterprises SARL, Pfizer Europe Finance B.V., Pfizer Export B.V., Pfizer Export Company, Pfizer Export Holding Company B.V, Pfizer Finance Share Service (Dalian) Co. Ltd., Pfizer Financial Services N.V./S.A., Pfizer France International Investments, Pfizer Free Zone Panama S. de R.L., Pfizer GEP S.L., Pfizer Global Holdings B.V., Pfizer Global Supply Japan Inc., Pfizer Global Trading, Pfizer Group Luxembourg Sarl, Pfizer Gulf FZ-LLC, Pfizer H.C.P. Corporation, Pfizer HK Service Company Limited, Pfizer Health AB, Pfizer Health Solutions Inc., Pfizer Healthcare Ireland, Pfizer Hellas A.E., Pfizer Himalaya Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Holding France, Pfizer Holding Ventures, Pfizer Holdings Corporation, Pfizer Holdings Europe Unlimited Company, Pfizer Holdings G.K., Pfizer Holdings International Corporation, Pfizer Holdings International Luxembourg (PHIL) Sarl, Pfizer Holdings North America SARL, Pfizer Hungary Holdings TRAE Kft., Pfizer Inc., Pfizer Innovations AB, Pfizer Innovations LLC, Pfizer Innovative Supply Point International BVBA, Pfizer International LLC, Pfizer International Markets Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer International Operations, Pfizer International S. de R.L., Pfizer International Trading (Shanghai) Limited, Pfizer Investment Capital Unlimited Company, Pfizer Investment Co. Ltd., Pfizer Investment Holdings S.a.r.l., Pfizer Ireland Investments Limited, Pfizer Ireland PFE Holding 1 LLC, Pfizer Ireland PFE Holding 2 LLC, Pfizer Ireland Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer Ireland Ventures Unlimited Company, Pfizer Italia S.r.l., Pfizer Italy Group Holding S.r.l., Pfizer Japan Inc., Pfizer LLC, Pfizer Laboratories (Pty) Limited, Pfizer Laboratories Limited, Pfizer Laboratories PFE (Pty) Ltd, Pfizer Leasing Ireland Limited, Pfizer Leasing UK Limited, Pfizer Limitada, Pfizer Limited, Pfizer Luxco Holdings SARL, Pfizer Luxembourg Global Holdings S.a r.l., Pfizer Luxembourg SARL, Pfizer MAP Holding Inc., Pfizer Manufacturing Austria G.m.b.H., Pfizer Manufacturing Belgium N.V., Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland GmbH, Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland Grundbesitz GmbH & Co. KG, Pfizer Manufacturing Holdings LLC, Pfizer Manufacturing Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Manufacturing LLC, Pfizer Manufacturing Services, Pfizer Medical Technology Group (Belgium) N.V., Pfizer Medicamentos Genericos e Participacoes Ltda., Pfizer Mexico Luxco SARL, Pfizer Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pfizer Middle East for Pharmaceuticals Animal Health and Chemicals S.A.E., Pfizer New Zealand Limited, Pfizer Norge AS, Pfizer North American Holdings Inc., Pfizer OTC B.V., Pfizer Overseas LLC, Pfizer Oy, Pfizer PFE ApS, Pfizer PFE AsiaPac Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Australia Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Australia Pty Ltd, Pfizer PFE B.V., Pfizer PFE Baltic Holdings B.V., Pfizer PFE Belgium SPRL, Pfizer PFE Brazil Holding S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE CIA. Ltda., Pfizer PFE Chile Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Colombia Holding Corp., Pfizer PFE Colombia S.A.S, Pfizer PFE Commercial Holdings LLC, Pfizer PFE Croatia Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Eastern Investments B.V., Pfizer PFE Finland Oy, Pfizer PFE France, Pfizer PFE Global Holdings B.V., Pfizer PFE Ireland Pharmaceuticals Holding 1 B.V., Pfizer PFE Italy Holdco 2 S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Italy Holdco S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Pfizer PFE Limited, Pfizer PFE Luxembourg S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Mexico Holding 3 LLC, Pfizer PFE Netherlands Holding 1 C.V., Pfizer PFE New Zealand, Pfizer PFE New Zealand Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Norway Holding S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE PILSA Holdco S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Peru Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Peru S.R.L., Pfizer PFE Pharmaceuticals Israel Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Pharmaceuticals Israel Ltd., Pfizer PFE Private Limited, Pfizer PFE S.R.L, Pfizer PFE Service Company Holding Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer PFE Singapore Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Singapore Pte. Ltd., Pfizer PFE Spain B.V., Pfizer PFE Spain Holding S.L., Pfizer PFE Sweden Holding 2 S.a.r.l., Pfizer PFE Sweden Holding S.a.r.l., Pfizer PFE Switzerland GmbH, Pfizer PFE Turkey Holding 1 B.V., Pfizer PFE Turkey Holding 2 B.V., Pfizer PFE UK Holding 4 LP, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 1 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 2 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 3 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 4 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 5 LLC, Pfizer PFE spol. s r.o., Pfizer PFE Ilaclar Anonim Sirketi, Pfizer Pakistan Limited, Pfizer Parke Davis (Thailand) Ltd., Pfizer Parke Davis Inc., Pfizer Parke Davis Sdn. Bhd., Pfizer Pharm Algerie, Pfizer Pharma GmbH, Pfizer Pharma PFE GmbH, Pfizer Pharmaceutical (Wuxi) Co. Ltd., Pfizer Pharmaceutical Trading Limited Liability Company (a/k/a Pfizer Kft. or Pfizer LLC), Pfizer Pharmaceuticals B.V., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Global B.V., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Israel Ltd., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Korea Limited, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals LLC, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Pfizer Pigments Inc., Pfizer Polska Sp. z.o.o., Pfizer Private Limited, Pfizer Production LLC, Pfizer Products Inc., Pfizer Products India Private Limited, Pfizer Research (NC) Inc., Pfizer Romania SRL, Pfizer S.A., Pfizer S.A., Pfizer S.A. (Belgium), Pfizer S.A. de C.V., Pfizer S.A.S., Pfizer S.G.P.S. Lda., Pfizer S.L., Pfizer S.R.L., Pfizer SRB d.o.o., Pfizer Saidal Manufacturing, Pfizer Sante Familiale, Pfizer Saudi Limited, Pfizer Seiyaku K.K., Pfizer Service Company BVBA, Pfizer Service Company Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Services 1, Pfizer Services LLC, Pfizer Shared Services Unlimited Company, Pfizer Shareholdings Intermediate SARL, Pfizer Singapore Holding Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Singapore Trading Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Spain Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Specialties Limited, Pfizer Strategic Investment Holdings LLC, Pfizer Sweden Partnership KB, Pfizer TRAE Holdings Kft., Pfizer Trading Polska sp.z.o.o., Pfizer Transactions Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Transactions LLC, Pfizer Transactions Luxembourg SARL, Pfizer Transport LLC, Pfizer Ukraine LLC, Pfizer Vaccines LLC, Pfizer Venezuela S.A., Pfizer Venture Investments LLC, Pfizer Ventures LLC, Pfizer Worldwide Services Unlimited Company, Pfizer Zona Franca S.A., Pfizer spol. s r.o., Pharmacia, Pharmacia & Upjohn Company Inc., Pharmacia & Upjohn Company LLC, Pharmacia & Upjohn LLC, Pharmacia & Upjohn S.A. de C.V., Pharmacia Brasil Ltda., Pharmacia Hepar LLC, Pharmacia Holding AB, Pharmacia Inter-American LLC, Pharmacia International B.V., Pharmacia LLC, Pharmacia Limited, Pharmacia Nostrum S.A., Pharmacia South Africa (Pty) Ltd, PowderJect Research Limited, PowderMed, Purepac Pharmaceutical Holdings LLC, Redvax, Renrall LLC, Rinat Neuroscience, Rinat Neuroscience Corp., Roerig Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Roerig S.A., Sao Cristovao Participacoes Ltda., Searle Laboratorios Lda., Serenex, Servicios P&U S. de R.L. de C.V., Shiley LLC, Sinergis Farma-Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Site Realty Inc., Solinor LLC, Sugen LLC, Tabor LLC, The Pfizer Incubator LLC, Therachon, Thiakis Limited, Treerly Health Co. Ltd, US Oral Pharmaceuticals Pty Ltd, Upjohn Laboratorios Lda., Vesteralens Naturprodukter A/S, Vesteralens Naturprodukter AB, Vesteralens Naturprodukter AS, Vesteralens Naturprodukter OY, Vicuron Holdings LLC, Vinci Farma S.A., W-L LLC, Warner Lambert, Warner Lambert Ilac Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Warner Lambert del Uruguay S.A., Warner-Lambert (Thailand) Limited, Warner-Lambert Company AG, Warner-Lambert Company LLC, Warner-Lambert Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Warner-Lambert S.A., Whitehall International Inc., Whitehall Laboratories Inc., Wyeth (Thailand) Ltd., Wyeth AB, Wyeth Australia Pty. Limited, Wyeth Ayerst Inc., Wyeth Ayerst S.a r.l., Wyeth Biopharma, Wyeth Canada ULC, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare LLC, Wyeth Europa Limited, Wyeth Farma S.A., Wyeth Holdings LLC, Wyeth Industria Farmaceutica Ltda., Wyeth KFT., Wyeth LLC, Wyeth Lederle S.r.l., Wyeth Lederle Vaccines S.A., Wyeth Pakistan Limited, Wyeth Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Company, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals FZ-LLC, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Limited, Wyeth Puerto Rico Inc., Wyeth S.A.S, Wyeth Subsidiary Illinois Corporation, Wyeth Whitehall Export GmbH, Wyeth Whitehall SARL, Wyeth-Ayerst (Asia) Limited, Wyeth-Ayerst International LLC, and Wyeth-Ayerst Promotions Limited. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Procter & Gamble: "Petersburg Products International" LLC, "Procter & Gamble Services" LLC, "Procter & Gamble" LLC, 1837 LLC, Agile Pursuits Franchising Inc., Agile Pursuits Inc., Ambi Pur, Arbora & Ausonia, Arbora & Ausonia S.L.U., Avon - Giorgio Beverly Hills, Billie, Braun GmbH, Braun Shanghai Co. Ltd., Celtic Insurance Company Inc., Charlie Banana USA LLC, Corporativo Procter & Gamble S. de R.L. de C.V., DDFSkincare, Detergent Products B.V., Detergent Products SARL, Detergenti S.A., FPG Oleochemicals Sdn. Bhd., Fameccanica Data S.p.A., Fameccanica Industria e Comercio Do Brasil LTDA., Fameccanica Machinery Shanghai Co. Ltd., Fameccanica North America Inc., Farmacy Beauty, Fater Central Europe SRL, Fater Eastern Europe LLC, Fater Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Fater S.p.A., Fater Temizlik Urunleri Ltd STI, First Aid Beauty, First Aid Beauty Limited, Folgers Coffee, Fountain Square Music Publishing Co. Inc., Gillette Australia Pty. Ltd., Gillette China Limited, Gillette Commercial Operations North America, Gillette Diversified Operations Pvt. Ltd., Gillette Egypt S.A.E., Gillette Group UK Ltd, Gillette Holding Company LLC, Gillette Holding GmbH, Gillette India Limited, Gillette Industries Ltd., Gillette International B.V., Gillette Latin America Holding B.V., Gillette Management LLC, Gillette Pakistan Limited, Gillette Poland International Sp. z.o.o., Gillette Shanghai Ltd., Gillette U.K. Limited, Gillette del Uruguay S.A., Hyginett KFT, Industries Marocaines Modernes SA, Inversiones Plaza LLC, LLC "Procter & Gamble - Novomoskovsk", LLC "Procter & Gamble Distributorskaya Compania", LLC Procter & and Gamble Ukraine, Laboratoire Mediflor S.A.S., Laboratorios Vicks S.L.U., Lamberts Healthcare Ltd., Liberty Street Music Publishing Company Inc., Limited Liability Company 'Procter & Gamble Trading Ukraine', MDVIP, MERCK KGAA NPV, Marcvenca Inversiones C.A., Merck Consumer Healthcare, Modern Industries Company - Dammam, Modern Products Company - Jeddah, Native, Nature's Best Health Products Ltd., New Chapter Canada Inc., New Chapter Inc., Nioxin Research Laboratories, Noxell Corporation, OUAI, Olay LLC, Oral-B Laboratories, P&G Consumer Health Germany GmbH, P&G Distribution East Africa Limited, P&G Distribution Morocco SAS, P&G Hair Care Holding Inc., P&G Health Austria GmbH & Co. OG, P&G Health France S.A.S., P&G Health Germany GmbH, P&G Healthcare Zhejiang Limited, P&G Industrial Peru S.R.L., P&G Innovation Godo Kaisha, P&G Investment Management Ltd., P&G Israel M.D.O. Ltd., P&G Japan G.K., P&G K.K., P&G Northeast Asia Pte. Ltd., P&G Prestige Godo Kaisha, P&G South African Trading Pty. Ltd., P&G-Clairol, PG13 Launchpad Alpha Inc., PG13 Launchpad Beta Inc., PG13 Launchpad Gamma Inc., PGT Healthcare LLP, PT Procter & Gamble Home Products Indonesia, PT Procter & Gamble Operations Indonesia, Phase II Holdings Corporation, Pressbox, Procter & Gamble Algeria EURL, Procter & Gamble Amazon Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Amiens S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Argentina SRL, Procter & Gamble Asia Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Australia Proprietary Limited, Procter & Gamble Azerbaijan Services LLC, Procter & Gamble Bangladesh Private Ltd., Procter & Gamble Blois S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Brazil Holdings B.V., Procter & Gamble Bulgaria EOOD, Procter & Gamble Business Services Canada Company, Procter & Gamble Canada Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Chengdu Ltd., Procter & Gamble Chile Limitada, Procter & Gamble China Ltd., Procter & Gamble China Sales Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Colombia Ltda., Procter & Gamble Commercial LLC, Procter & Gamble Czech Republic s.r.o., Procter & Gamble DS Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Danmark ApS, Procter & Gamble Detergent Beijing Ltd., Procter & Gamble Deutschland GmbH, Procter & Gamble Distributing New Zealand Limited, Procter & Gamble Distributing Philippines Inc., Procter & Gamble Distribution Company Europe BV, Procter & Gamble Distribution S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Eastern Europe LLC, Procter & Gamble Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Procter & Gamble Egypt, Procter & Gamble Egypt Distribution, Procter & Gamble Egypt Holding, Procter & Gamble Egypt Manufacturing Company, Procter & Gamble Egypt Supplies, Procter & Gamble Energy Company LLC, Procter & Gamble Espana S.A.U., Procter & Gamble Far East Inc., Procter & Gamble Finance Holding Ltd., Procter & Gamble Finance Management S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Finance U.K. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Financial Investments LLP, Procter & Gamble Financial Services Ltd., Procter & Gamble Financial Services S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Finland OY, Procter & Gamble France S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Germany GmbH, Procter & Gamble Germany GmbH & Co. Operations oHG, Procter & Gamble Ghana Trading Limited, Procter & Gamble GmbH, Procter & Gamble Grundstucks-und Vermogensverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, Procter & Gamble Guangzhou Consumer Products Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Guangzhou Enterprise Management Service Company Limited, Procter & Gamble Guangzhou Ltd., Procter & Gamble Guangzhou Technology Innovation Co. LTD., Procter & Gamble Gulf FZE, Procter & Gamble Hair Care LLC, Procter & Gamble Health & Beauty Care Limited, Procter & Gamble Health Belgium BV, Procter & Gamble Health Limited, Procter & Gamble Health Ltd., Procter & Gamble Health Poland Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Hellas Single Member Ltd., Procter & Gamble Holding France S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Holding GmbH, Procter & Gamble Holding S.r.l., Procter & Gamble Holding Thailand Limited, Procter & Gamble Holdings UK Ltd., Procter & Gamble Home Products Private Limited, Procter & Gamble Honduras S de RL, Procter & Gamble Hong Kong Limited, Procter & Gamble Hungary Wholesale Trading Partnership KKT, Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care Limited, Procter & Gamble Inc., Procter & Gamble India Holdings Inc., Procter & Gamble Indochina Company Limited, Procter & Gamble Industrial - 2012 C.A., Procter & Gamble Industrial S.C.A., Procter & Gamble Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Costa Rica Limitada, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de El Salvador Limitada de Capital Variable, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Guatemala Limitada, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Panama S. de R.L., Procter & Gamble International Operations SA, Procter & Gamble International Operations SA-ROHQ, Procter & Gamble International Sarl, Procter & Gamble Investment Company UK Ltd., Procter & Gamble Investment Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Italia S.p.A., Procter & Gamble Jiangsu Ltd., Procter & Gamble Kazakhstan Distribution LLP, Procter & Gamble Korea Inc., Procter & Gamble Korea S&D Co., Procter & Gamble L&CP Limited, Procter & Gamble Leasing LLC, Procter & Gamble Levant S.A.L., Procter & Gamble Limited, Procter & Gamble Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Belgium N.V., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Berlin GmbH, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing GmbH, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Ireland Limited, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing SA Pty Ltd, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Thailand Limited, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Tianjin Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Marketing Romania SRL, Procter & Gamble Mataro S.L.U., Procter & Gamble Mexico Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Mexico Inc., Procter & Gamble Middle East FZE, Procter & Gamble Nederland B.V., Procter & Gamble Netherlands Services B.V., Procter & Gamble Nigeria Limited, Procter & Gamble Norge AS, Procter & Gamble Operations Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Overseas India B.V., Procter & Gamble Overseas Ltd., Procter & Gamble Pakistan Private Limited, Procter & Gamble Peru S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Philippines Business Services Inc., Procter & Gamble Philippines Inc., Procter & Gamble Polska Sp. z o.o, Procter & Gamble Portugal - Produtos De Consumo Higiene e Saude S.A., Procter & Gamble Product Supply U.K. Limited, Procter & Gamble Productions Inc., Procter & Gamble RHD Inc., Procter & Gamble RSC Regional Service Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble Retail Services Sarl, Procter & Gamble S.r.l., Procter & Gamble Service GmbH, Procter & Gamble Services Company N.V., Procter & Gamble Services Switzerland SA, Procter & Gamble Singapore Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Spol. s.r.o. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Sverige AB, Procter & Gamble Switzerland SARL, Procter & Gamble Taiwan Limited, Procter & Gamble Taiwan Sales Company Limited, Procter & Gamble Technical Centres Limited, Procter & Gamble Technology Beijing Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Trading Thailand Limited, Procter & Gamble Tuketim Mallari Sanayii A.S., Procter & Gamble UK, Procter & Gamble UK Group Holdings Ltd, Procter & Gamble UK Parent Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble Universal Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Vietnam Company Limited, Procter & Gamble d.o.o. za trgovinu, Procter & Gamble de Venezuela S.C.A., Procter & Gamble de Venezuela S.R.L., Procter & Gamble do Brasil Ltda., Procter & Gamble do Brazil LLC, Procter & Gamble do Nordeste S/A, Procter & Gamble doo Beograd, Procter & Gamble-Rakona s.r.o., Procter and Gamble Lanka Private Limited, Procter and Gamble SA Pty Ltd., Progam Realty & Development Corporation, Recovery Engineering, Redmond Products Inc., Richardson-Vicks, Richardson-Vicks Real Estate Inc., Riverfront Music Publishing Co. 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.. Read More Cenovus Energy Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in Canada, the United States, and the Asia Pacific region. The company operates through Oil Sands, Conventional, Offshore, Canadian Manufacturing, U.S. Manufacturing, and Retail segments. The Oil Sands segment develops and produces bitumen and heavy oil in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan. This segments Foster Creek, Christina Lake, Sunrise, and Tucker oil sands projects, as well as Lloydminster thermal and conventional heavy oil assets The Conventional segment holds assets primarily located in Elmworth-Wapiti, Kaybob-Edson, Clearwater, and Rainbow Lake operating in Alberta and British Columbia, as well as interests in various natural gas processing facilities. The offshore segment engages in the exploration and development activities. The Canadian Manufacturing segment includes the owned and operated Lloydminster upgrading and asphalt refining complex, which upgrades heavy oil and bitumen into synthetic crude oil, diesel fuel, asphalt, and other ancillary products, as well as owns and operates the Bruderheim crude-by-rail terminal and two ethanol plants. The U.S. Manufacturing segment comprises the refining of crude oil to produce diesel, gasoline, jet fuel, asphalt, and other products. The Retail segment consists of marketing of its own and third-party refined petroleum products through retail, commercial, and bulk petroleum outlets, as well as wholesale channels. Cenovus Energy Inc. was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. 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. Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. The company's personal banking products and services include checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, and financial and investment advice services; and commercial banking products and services comprise business deposit accounts, commercial credit cards, business loans and commercial mortgages, cash management solutions, foreign exchange, specialized banking programs, treasury and payment solutions, and risk management products for small business and commercial banking customers. It also offers investment and wealth advisory services; digital investing services; financial services and solutions; and investment management, and trust and custody services. In addition, the company provides life insurance, accident and sickness insurance, and annuity products; creditor and travel insurance to bank customers; and reinsurance solutions. Further, it offers client's debt and equity capital-raising services, as well as loan origination and syndication, and treasury management; strategic advice on mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and recapitalizations, as well as valuation and fairness opinions; and trade finance, risk mitigation, and other operating services. Additionally, the company provides research and access to markets for institutional, corporate, and retail clients; trading solutions that include debt, foreign exchange, interest rate, credit, equity, securitization and commodities; new product development and origination services, as well as risk management advice and services to hedge against fluctuations; and funding and liquidity management services to its clients. It operates through approximately 900 bank branches and 3,300 automated banking machines in Canada and the United States. Bank of Montreal was founded in 1817 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. 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. The following companies are subsidiares of Canon: Axis AB, Axis Communications, Axis Communications AB, BriefCam, Canon (China) Co. Ltd., Canon (Schweiz) AG, Canon (Suzhou) Inc., Canon (UK) Ltd., Canon Anelva, Canon Australia Pty. Ltd., Canon Bretagne S.A.S., Canon Business Machines (Philippines) Inc., Canon Canada Inc., Canon Chemicals Inc., Canon Components Inc., Canon Dalian Business Machines Inc., Canon Deutschland GmbH, Canon Electron Tubes & Devices Co. Ltd., Canon Electronics Inc., Canon Europa N.V., Canon Europe Ltd., Canon Financial Services Inc., Canon Finetech, Canon Finetech Nisca Inc., Canon France S.A.S., Canon Hi-Tech (Thailand) Ltd., Canon Hongkong Co. Ltd., Canon IT Solutions Inc., Canon Inc. Taiwan, Canon India Pvt. Ltd., Canon Information Systems Research Australia Pty. Ltd., Canon Italia S.p.A., Canon Machinery Inc., Canon Marketing Japan Inc., Canon Medical Finance Co. Ltd., Canon Medical Systems Corporation, Canon Medical Systems Europe B.V., Canon Medical Systems Manufacturing Asia Sdn. Bhd., Canon Medical Systems USA Inc., Canon Middle East FZ-LLC, Canon Nederland N.V., Canon Opto (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Canon Prachinburi (Thailand) Ltd., Canon Precision Inc., Canon Research Centre France S.A.S., Canon Ru LLC, Canon Semiconductor Equipment Inc., Canon Singapore Pte. Ltd., Canon Solutions America Inc., Canon System and Support Inc., Canon Tokki Corporation, Canon U.S.A. Inc., Canon Vietnam Co. Ltd., Canon Virginia Inc., Canon Zhongshan Business Machines Co. Ltd., Canon Zhuhai Inc., Fukushima Canon Inc., Harbour IT Pty. Ltd., Kite, Kite.ly, Milestone Systems, Milestone Systems A/S, Miyazaki Canon Inc., Molecular Imprints, Molecular Imprints Inc., Nagahama Canon Inc., Nagasaki Canon Inc., Oce Printing Systems G.m.b.H. & Co. KG, Oce-Technologies B.V., Oita Canon Inc., Oita Canon Materials Inc., Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation, Virtual Imaging, and lifecake. Read More AstraZeneca PLC, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of prescription medicines. Its marketed products include Calquence, Enhertu, Faslodex, Imfinzi, Iressa, Koselugo, Lumoxiti, Lynparza, Orpathys, Tagrisso, and Zoladex for oncology; Brilinta/Brilique, Bydureon/Byetta, BCise, Byetta, Crestor, Evrenzo, Farxiga/Forxiga, Komboglyze/Kombiglyze XR, Lokelma, Onglyza, Qtern, and Xigduo/Xigduo XR for cardiovascular, renal, and metabolism diseases; Bevespi Aerosphere, Breztri Aerosphere, Daliresp/Daxas, Duaklir Genuair, Fasenra, Pulmicort, Saphnelo, Symbicort, and Tudorza/Eklira/Bretaris for respiratory and immunology; and Andexxa/Ondexxya, Kanuma, Soliris, Strensiq, and Ultomiris for rare diseases. The company's marketed products also comprise Synagis for respiratory syncytial virus; Fluenz Tetra/FluMist Quadrivalent for Influenza; Seroquel IR/Seroquel XR for schizophrenia bipolar disease; Nexium, and Losec/Prilosec for gastroenterology; and Vaxzevria and Evusheld for covid-19. The company serves primary care and specialty care physicians through distributors and local representative offices in the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Australasia. It has a collaboration agreement with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to research, develop, and commercialize small molecule medicines for obesity; Neurimmune AG to develop and commercialize NI006; Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to develop eplontersen, a liver-targeted antisense therapy in Phase III development for the treatment of transthyretin amyloidosis; Proteros Biostructures GmbH to jointly discover novel small molecules for the treatment of hematological cancers; Sierra Oncology, Inc. to develop and commercialize AZD5153. The company was formerly known as Zeneca Group PLC and changed its name to AstraZeneca PLC in April 1999. AstraZeneca PLC was incorporated in 1992 and is headquartered in Cambridge, the United Kingdom. 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.. Read More 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. The following companies are subsidiares of Eli Lilly and: 1096401 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, ARMO BioSciences Inc, ARMO Bioscience, Advanced Cardiovascular Systems, Alnara Pharmaceuticals, Alnara Pharmaceuticals Inc., Andean Technical Operations Center, Applied Molecular Evolution Inc., AurKa Pharma, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals Inc., ChemGen, CoLucid Pharmaceuticals, CoLucid Pharmaceuticals Inc., Dermira, Devices for Vascular Intervention(DVI), Disarm Therapeutics, Dista Ilac Ticaret Ltd. Sti., Dista S.A., Dista-Produtos Quimicos & Farmaceuticos LDA, ELCO Dominicana SRL, ELCO Insurance Company Limited, ELCO Management Inc., ELCO for Trade and Marketing S.A.E., ELGO Insurance Company Limited, Elanco Animal Health Ireland Limited, Elanco Switzerland Holding Sarl, Eli Lilly (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Eli Lilly (Philippines) Incorporated, Eli Lilly (S.A.) (Proprietary) Limited, Eli Lilly (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Eli Lilly (Suisse) S.A., Eli Lilly Asia Inc., Eli Lilly Asia Pacific SSC Sdn Bhd, Eli Lilly Australia Pty. Limited, Eli Lilly B-H d.o.o., Eli Lilly Benelux S.A., Eli Lilly Bienes y Servicios S de RL de CV, Eli Lilly CR s.r.o., Eli Lilly Canada Inc., Eli Lilly Cork Limited, Eli Lilly Danmark A/S, Eli Lilly Egypt for Trading, Eli Lilly European Clinical Trial Services SA, Eli Lilly Export S.A., Eli Lilly Finance S.A., Eli Lilly Ges.m.b.H., Eli Lilly Group Limited, Eli Lilly Holdings Ltd., Eli Lilly Hrvatska d.o.o., Eli Lilly Interamerica Inc., Eli Lilly Interamerica Inc. y Compania Limitada, Eli Lilly International Corporation, Eli Lilly Ireland Holdings Limited, Eli Lilly Israel Ltd., Eli Lilly Italia S.p.A., Eli Lilly Japan K.K., Eli Lilly Kinsale Limited, Eli Lilly Nederland B.V., Eli Lilly Nigeria Ltd., Eli Lilly Norge A.S., Eli Lilly Pakistan (Pvt.) Ltd., Eli Lilly Polska Sp.z.o.o. (Ltd.), Eli Lilly Regional Operations GmbH, Eli Lilly Romania SRL, Eli Lilly S.A., Eli Lilly Saudi Arabia Limited, Eli Lilly Services Inc, Eli Lilly Services India Private Limited, Eli Lilly Slovakia s.r.o., Eli Lilly Sweden AB, Eli Lilly Vostok S.A. Geneva, Eli Lilly and Company, Eli Lilly and Company (India) Pvt. Ltd., Eli Lilly and Company (Ireland) Limited, Eli Lilly and Company (N.Z.) Limited, Eli Lilly and Company (Taiwan) Inc., Eli Lilly and Company Limited, Eli Lilly de Centro America S.A., Eli Lilly do Brasil Limitada, Eli Lilly farmacevtska druzba d.o.o., Eli Lilly y Compania de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Eli Lilly y Compania de Venezuela S.A., Glycostasis Inc, Greenfield-Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Heart Rhythm Technologies Inc, Hybritech, Hypnion, ICOS Corporation, ImClone GmbH, ImClone LLC, ImClone Systems Holdings Inc., ImClone Systems LLC, Imclone Systems, Irisfarma S.A., Ivy Animal Health, Kinsale Financial Services Unlimited Company, Lilly (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd, Lilly Asia Ventures Fund I L.P., Lilly Asia Ventures Fund II L.P., Lilly Asian Ventures Fund III L.P., Lilly Cayman Holdings, Lilly China Research and Development Co. Ltd., Lilly Deutschland GmbH, Lilly France S.A.S., Lilly Global Nederland Holdings B.V., Lilly Global Services Inc., Lilly Holding GmbH, Lilly Holdings B.V., Lilly Hungaria KFT, Lilly Japan Financing G.K., Lilly Korea Ltd., Lilly Nederland Finance B.V., Lilly Nederland Finance B.V. - GCC, Lilly Nederland Holding B.V., Lilly Pharma Ltd., Lilly Portugal - Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Lilly S.A., Lilly Suzhou Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Lilly Trading Co. LTD, Lilly USA LLC, Lilly Ventures Fund I LLC, Lilly del Caribe Inc., Lilly ilac ticaret limited sirketi, Lohmann Animal Health, Loxo Oncology, Lylly Centre for Clinical Pharmacology PTE. LTD., Novartis Animal Health, OY Eli Lilly Finland AB, Origin Medsystems, PT. Eli Lilly Indonesia, Pacific Biotech, Pharmaserve-Lilly S.A.C.I., Physio-Control, SGX Pharmaceuticals, SGX Pharmaceuticals Inc, Spaly Bioquimica S.A., UAB Eli Lilly Lietuva, Valquifarma S.A., and Vital Pharma Productos Farmaceuticos. Read More Taliparamba's Seethi Sahib Higher Secondary School sets up libraries in all its 69 classrooms | Students, alumni, traders and business houses pitch in to build a bank of 6,000 books Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Patrick Donachie JAMAICA Police were asking for the publics help in trying to find a man who has been missing since Oct. 17. Shan Forbes, 31, was last seen about 12 p.m. that day inside of the Jamaica Center/Parsons Archer Boulevard subway station, according to the NYPD. Forbes, who lives in Laurelton, was last seen wearing a gray long-sleeved shirt, blue jeans and red and black sneakers. Police described him as being 5-feet-9, and weighing 150 pounds with brown eyes. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Gina Martinez The Greater Allen A.M.E Cathedral in Jamaica hosted a panel discussion Saturday on the criminal justice system to examine the roots of the issues facing communities of color. Among the topics were over policing, stop and frisk, mass incarceration, the blue wall and bias in the court system against minorities. The featured panelist were City Councilman Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest), civil rights lawyer Royce Russell and Rainece Medley, a representative from the Civilian Complaint Review Board. Each gave their positions on the current state of the criminal justice system and then took questions from audience members. So many of the problems that we have in our country, social problems, mental health problems, economic problems, have over the course of a few decades been turned more and more into policing problems, Lancman said. On the issue of mental health, about 40 percent of the people in Rikers Island at any given time have a mental health diagnosis. Some of them might also be legitimate criminals. The fact is that we have no real system in New York for dealing with people who have mental health issues that puts them out in the street and puts them in a situation where their only interaction with government is going to be a police officer. Lancman also spoke about how over policing is largely focused on minority neighborhoods and then turns young kids into criminals. He pointed out that in the past a police officer may have reprimanded a young person to stop riding his bike on the sidewalk or to leave the park after dark, but now many people in certain communities are being given criminal summonses to appear in criminal court. Failure to appear results in a warrant for your arrest and its to the point where in New York City we have over a million open arrest warrants for people who didnt appear in criminal court for these low-level, quality-of-life offenses. If you look, its not very mysterious, who is getting these criminal summons. Where is the focus of this low level criminal enforcement falling upon? Its in communities of color. For example, Lancman said some 2,000 summons are issued every year for riding bikes on sidewalks in Bedford Stuyvesant, but in affluent Park Slope the number is only eight. Medley spoke about what people should do if they have an unpleasant encounter with police. CCRB investigates and mediates complaints from the public about misconduct by NYPD officers. It handles complaints about excessive force, abuse of authority, discourtesy and offensive language. She encouraged anyone who has experienced misconduct to file a complaint so that investigations can begin. But, much to the displeasure of the audience, she told them the CCRB holds only so much power. When CCRB finds that an officer committed misconduct the case is turned over to the police commissioner, who has the sole authority to impose discipline. They were reminded, though, that CCRB is able to document complaints and leaves a paper trail that might be useful in the future. The value in CCRB is that you need to start to have a record, Russell said. If a person choked you one time and got away with it, the likelihood that theyll do it again is very, very high. And if you skip the process of CCRB, then the record may not be made for which someone else . in another time, another borough who may come to contact with that officer. He said the CCRB by compiling a record can make a small case stronger. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Patrick Donachie A Jamaica man was shot and killed early Sunday morning, and police are seeking information about his killer. At about 2:18 a.m., police from the 103rd Precinct responded to a 911 call about a man who was shot at the corner of 109th Avenue and Merrick Boulevard. Police arrived and searched the area, and found Niheen Donigan, 36, near the corner of 109th Avenue and 171st Street with a gunshot wound to the head. Donigan lived only a few blocks from the corner where he was found, according to information from police. EMS workers arrived and transported Donigan to Jamaica Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Donigan was arrested in 2001 for the April 14, 2001 homicide of Aswald Walker following a dispute over drugs, according to police sources at the time. Police searched for Donigan for a month-and-a-half before finding him in Massapequa, Long Island. Donigan barricaded himself in a house for four hours before he surrended to police, according to the NYPD at the time. Police said the investigation into Donigans murder was still ongoing. Anyone with information about the incident can call NYPD Crime Stoppers at 1 (800) 577-TIPS or submit tips online at www.nypdc rimes toppe rs.com . Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Patrick Donachie Police have charged a Pomonok man with aiming a gun at police officers, according to the NYPD. On Oct. 29, a plainclothes lieutenant and officer assigned to NYPD Housing Bureau Police Service Area 9 were patrolling inside a building at the Baisley Housing Development at 116-80 Guy R. Brewer Blvd. in Jamaica, police said. The two officers exited a second floor stairwell to find Jamel Ethridge, 38, allegedly with a gun in his hand, according to the NYPD. The two officers fired, striking Ethridge one time in the left leg. He was transported to Jamaica Hospital and is listed in stable condition, according to police. The NYPD said they recovered a loaded 9mm firearm at the scene, and noted the two officers were also transported to a local hospital for evaluation. Ethridge was later charged with attempted murder, criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment and menacing. Police said the investigation would continue under the auspices of the Force Investigation Division, which was created to investigate police-involved shootings. The NYPD also released a photo of the weapon they said they recovered at the scene. Looking for deals at annual Pittsburgh airport auction More than 800 appeared and about 700 participated in annual event last month. SHARE Skinner By Times Record News A Wichita Falls man is charged with injury to a child after a one-year-old boy suffered a fractured skull and facial injuries. According to an arrest affidavit: Just after midnight on Aug. 19, David Lamar Skinner, 25, brought the boy to the United Regional emergency room because the child was unresponsive. Medical personnel determined the boy had a skull fracture along with bruises on both cheeks and under his chin. Hospital personnel suspected child abuse and called Wichita Falls Police. A detective interviewed the boy's mother at the hospital and she said he was fine when she left for work about 7 p.m. that day. Skinner, the child's mother's boyfriend, told investigators he was watching the boy when the mother went to work. He said he had been playing video games and went to check on the toddler. He said the boy had been fine earlier, but he found him lying beside his bed and was unresponsive. Skinner said the child vomited when he picked him up. Photos and X-rays of the child were sent to the Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas where they were reviewed by a specialist. The specialist said injuries were consistent with blunt force trauma and physical abuse. Skinner was arrested Friday. His bond was set at $150,000. He was not in the Wichita County Jail Monday. Wichita County landowner Kevin Hunter stands next to a t-post marking the northern edge of his land near the Red River based on an independent land survey done in April 2015. Hunter has maps and surveys contradicting what the Bureau of Land Management claims is government-owned land along the Red River. TORIN HALSEY/TIMES RECORD NEWS SHARE O'Connor ruling mixed result for landowners, BLM By John Ingle of the Times Record News The federal judge overseeing the case of Texas landowners and others against the Bureau of Land Management made a mixed ruling Sunday that grants access to land by the federal agency, but with restrictions. Judge Reed O'Connor, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, partly granted and denied the BLM's "Motion to Compel Access to Plaintiff's Land," allowing access to the landowners' property but with limitations and certain conditions. The judge denied the plaintiff's request for a protective order. "Because the disputed boundary between Plaintiffs' properties and federally-owned land is clearly relevant, Defendants will be permitted access to the northern boundary of Plaintiffs' land for inspection," the judge wrote in his ruling. "The Court orders the following conditions be imposed on the inspection in order to facilitate Defendants' safety and alleviate some of Plaintiffs' concerns." The BLM in its original motion asked that its surveyors and armed federal law enforcement escorts be allowed access to all acreage of a landowners' property as part of their discovery efforts for the case. Attorneys for the plaintiffs said the BLM could access the land in question through federal lands to the north instead of through the entire expanse of the property. O'Connor said it is essential for the BLM to be able to access the relevant disputed lands, not all lands, and having to navigate the Red River is not a feasible option. "Because of the safety risk, financial expense, and unnecessary delay that would result from forcing Defendants to access the northern boundary of Plaintiffs' land from public access points, Defendants will be allowed to access the disputed area by crossing Plaintiffs' land," he said. "Plaintiffs shall notify Defendants of the route they are permitted to take to the northern boundary within 3 days of this order and Defendants must strictly adhere to that route. To facilitate an efficient inspection and ensure Defendants restrict their survey to the disputed area, a local deputy sheriff may escort the BLM inspection team directly to the northern boundary that abuts the southern gradient boundary of the Red River." Plaintiffs also asked the judge to require any federal employee or agent to sign a liability waiver, indemnifying the property owners of responsibility for injury or damages. The judge said that isn't necessary, but the BLM must provide a written notice to all participants of all the inherent dangers they might encounter including "unstable terrain, sinkholes, poisonous snakes, wild animals, and hunters." O'Connor also said it is reasonable for the BLM teams to have armed escort because of those dangers they could face while conducting business. He added that ensuring a safe and efficient inspection of the disputed lands does not violate the landowners' Fourth Amendment right to freedom of illegal search and seizure. While the judge has granted access to the landowners' property, he did outline specific conditions for doing so, including: n Defendants will have access to every individual Plaintiff's parcel of land for no more than three days. n No inspection will be permitted on Saturday or Sunday. n Every inspection must be conducted Monday to Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. n Plaintiffs are not required to be present during the inspection but are certainly permitted to observe the inspection and access their land at all times, provided they do not interfere with Defendants' inspection. n Defendants must provide at least three days' notice to each Plaintiff indicating the names and titles of all personnel who will be present for the inspection, every date an individual Plaintiff's land will be subject to inspection, and the exact time Defendants plan to arrive and depart from the parcel. n All Defendants must show photo identification before entering Plaintiff's land for inspection. n Defendants are prohibited from damaging or disturbing the property in any manner, other than as needed to carry out the survey, and shall ensure any gate they open is securely fastened before leaving the gated area. n Defendants are prohibited from damaging or disturbing any animals, hunting areas, feeders, or stands. n Defendants are prohibited from smoking while on Plaintiffs' property. n Defendants are prohibited from undertaking any excavation, soil sampling, or movement of earth. n Defendants may not enter any building or disturb any structure on Plaintiffs' properties. SHARE TORIN HALSEY/TIMES RECORD NEWS Wichita Falls Mayor Glenn Barham speaks during the City Council meeting Tuesday morning in which the council voted unanimously to approve a 53 percent water rate hike. Stage 5 drought restrictions have caused so much conservation among water users it has created an $8 million deficit in the budget. John Self, Wichita Falls I just have to write and state that the greatest Mayor our City has ever had, Glenn Barham, is leaving office due to term limits. Why term limits? Oh, well, his clone of a replacement, Tim Ingle is ready to take over. Why? Very similar qualities. Military minded, strong Christian faith, wisdom, high ethics and morals, plus six years experience already. His competition, Santellana, has one advantage, more money. With large donations to the Jr. League of Wichita Falls and others, plus his over-the-top saturation of yard signs throughout our city, he fully expects to buy his way into the office with one year experience on the City Council. The TRN is drinking the Koolaide with their endorsement of him. By the way, why does the TRN endorse local candidates? Shame on you. It seems biased, unfair and unnecessary to me. Electronic media here does not do that. In closing, my opinion is people voting for Hillary should be the only ones voting for Santellana. Do not downplay his dealings with Chad Wilson. Where there is smoke there is. To quote one of TRN's own "Keep it Real Wichita Falls." SHARE MANCHESTER, N.H. In 1936, President Franklin Roosevelt defeated Kansas' Gov. Alfred Landon in 46 of the 48 states, thereby creating the jest, "As Maine goes, so goes Vermont." Eight decades later, New England has gone from the Republicans' last redoubt in a bad year to their least receptive region in any year. Its six states have made 36 decisions in the last six presidential elections and the score is Democrats 35, Republicans 1 New Hampshire supported George W. Bush in 2000. Republicans hold just two of New England's 21 congressional seats, and two of 12 Senate seats, those of Maine's Susan Collins and New Hampshire's Kelly Ayotte. Just nine months ago time flies when you're having fun Donald Trump won his first victory in this state's primary. Ayotte could become an especially regrettable part of the collateral damage his campaign is doing to the party with which he is temporarily identified. But she probably will survive his undertow and win a second term, partly because she is almost everything people say they want in politics: She is neither old nor rich nor angry. She is 48 and often finds life amusing, as she recently did concerning former Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh's problem. He is trying to convince Indiana to return him as a senator to Washington, where he has lived and prospered since voluntarily leaving the Senate in 2011. When he was recently asked the address of his Indiana condominium, he was stumped. Ayotte, laughing, says, "I probably couldn't tell you my address in Washington." There she lives in a basement apartment, returning on weekends to New Hampshire, where her husband runs a small landscaping and snow removal business. This year, New Hampshire has what has become an American rarity, a choice between two grown-ups. Ayotte is the state's former attorney general. Her opponent, Maggie Hassan, 58, is ending her second term as governor. Both women have approximately 100 percent name recognition and benefit from what an Ayotte aide calls "three degrees of separation": Almost everyone in this small state has, or knows someone who has, met or otherwise had contact with the two. Which works to Ayotte's advantage. She is running by running 5K races, bagging groceries, riding all-terrain vehicles in the woods and generally smothering the state with retail politics. Hassan, whose challenge is to give voters a reason to fire Ayotte, is relying heavily on negative ads, especially ones criticizing Ayotte's path to her current position of refusing to vote for Trump. But paid ads often do not dent "three degrees of separation" knowledge. Sixty-four percent of voters say Ayotte's path to separation from Trump "makes no difference" to them. Last week, UMass Amherst/WBZ released a poll of likely voters, including those "leaning toward" a candidate, showed Ayotte with a 4-point lead. Which must reflect the fact that, in a survey of eight swing states, New Hampshire had the largest portion of voters (9.7 percent) intending to vote both for Clinton and for a Republican Senate candidate. New Hampshire campaigning is costly because candidates must advertise on Boston television, which is watched by almost 85 percent of New Hampshire voters. Of the state's 1.3 million residents, the 720,000 who will vote for senator are the targets of the $125 million $173.61 per vote that will be spent on the Senate contest by Nov. 8. Ayotte will be outspent on television by $20 million by $10 million in the last two weeks but in this politics-saturated state, broadcast political ads may be the equivalent of wallpaper semi-seen but not really noticed. For 36 years, the Senate seat Ayotte occupies has been held by representatives of a distinctive New Hampshire Republicanism. Warren Rudman for two terms and Judd Gregg for three brought flinty fiscal Puritanism to bear on the federal government's mismanagement of its fisc. New Hampshire currently has a Democratic senator, a member of Congress from each party, and a close contest for governor, so were Ayotte to lose, the state could be entirely blue, which does not suit the prickly ("Live Free or Die") and purple spirit of a state where 40 percent of voters are registered independents. In this year's crowded New Hampshire Republican primary, Ohio's Gov. John Kasich finished second to Trump. Today, only 17 percent of those who supported Kasich support Trump. The center-right of the Granite State seems likely to decide this race, giving rise to the saying, "As New Hampshire goes, so goes the Senate." George Will's email address is georgewill@washpost.com. He writes for The Washington Post Writers Group. SHARE SPRINGFIELD, Ohio Two weeks before the election, on the same day Donald Trump's campaign announced he would hold a big rally here at the Clark County Fairgrounds, the dreary storefront office of Hillary for President, supposedly open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, was still closed at 3:45 p.m. Oh, the times, they are a changing. Ohio used to be the bellwether whither Ohio, at least in election politics, so went the nation. In 2004, President George W. Bush pinned his hopes for re-election on Clark County and won. In 2008, the state went to Barack Obama. Throughout U.S. history, no Republican has won the White House without Ohio. The University of Virginia's Center for Politics examined results of presidential elections dating to 1896 and determined no state had a higher percentage of picking the winner than Ohio. Ohioans picked the winner in 28 out of 30 elections 93 percent. This election may make Ohio's reputation as the bellwether state a shibboleth and throw its unique election-predicting power into the dustbin of history. This November, Clark County is likely to vote for Trump, even though the money-grubbing Trump campaign is not providing enough yard signs or bumper stickers to his supporters. The calls of Republican officials around the country to Trump headquarters often go unanswered. Many supporters have to buy their own Trump signs online. As for Ohio, it is too close to call, although Trump is currently given a slight edge. Hillary Clinton may well win the White House, and Ohio may well vote for Trump. What has happened? Even though Ohio's overall economy is recovering from the 2008 recession, the worst since the Depression, many counties here, including Clark, are struggling to revitalize. Trump's three prongs anti-immigration, anti-trade and anti-war resonate with many workers paid less than they once were now that their industries have left town or closed altogether. Clark County has lost 15 percent of its manufacturing jobs in the last decade. And patriotic Ohioans more than 200,000 served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are tired of war. (Trump boasts of plans to blow up "those suckers" and kill their families when he talks of the Islamic State.) In Ohio, it's all about the disappearing middle class. It's about parents struggling to make the rent or the mortgage payment, scratching by to feed their children, and all but giving up hope those youngsters will be able to go to college. Drugs have become a huge problem in this dwindling city of Springfield, which once epitomized America's can-do spirit of optimism. Clark County was once the world's largest provider of farm implements. Its International Harvester trucks were the industry standard. In 1983, Newsweek magazine devoted its 50th anniversary issue to Springfield. Titled "The American Dream," the issue was devoted to celebrating Springfielders, "the men and women who live the news, the unsung people who make our country." Despite despair here over Trump's racism, sexism, outright bigotry, lack of discipline, and offensive, irrational braggadocio so at odds with the religious, conservative, industrious citizens of Springfield, the city and Ohio have the demographics closest to Trump's message. Ohio has a larger percentage of white citizens without college degrees than almost any other battleground state. The anger of far too many people without hope of attaining the future they once dreamed of is palpable in this city. So are the anger and disgust at Washington, blamed for not listening, not understanding and total inaction except to benefit the wealthy and powerful. But, slowly, optimism is returning, with city leaders working hard to attract new service industry jobs, better parks, a rejuvenated downtown and a better life for citizens. If Springfield goes narrowly for Trump, it won't be because people here admire him. It will be because they need opportunities and a fair shake. They have felt ignored and they don't like it. They are shouting to be heard and understood. Earlier this month, Clinton sent her running mate, Tim Kaine, to Clark County to stump for her. Hopefully he returned to Clinton headquarters with a message: The good people of Ohio don't need a handout; they need a hand up. Ann McFeatters is an op-ed columnist for Tribune News Service. Readers may send her email at amcfeatters@nationalpress.com. Bethlehem Monolith Solar told officials in the town of Bethlehem last week that it is still having trouble lining up the financing for its new $5 million headquarters in Slingerlands. Monolith, which is based in Rensselaer, announced two years ago plans to build a new headquarters in Slingerlands at the Vista Technology Campus. The Cuomo administration promised the company $800,000 in financial assistance, and the Bethlehem Industrial Development Agency later offered up more than $600,000 in tax breaks as well. However, Monolith has yet to break ground on the project because it has been unable to secure loans to acquire the land at Vista from Columbia Development and build the headquarters, which will include offices and a warehouse for solar panel assembly. Back in August, Monolith executives had promised after several earlier delays that it was finally close to getting a U.S. Small Business Administration loan for the project through KeyBank and that construction would begin by November. But Monolith controller Jennifer Pickett told the Bethlehem IDA at its board meeting last week that the SBA loan was being held up over an issue with a shareholder in one of its subsidiaries that didn't want to have to guarantee the loan. Pickett didn't identify the shareholder by name. But in a letter sent to the IDA last week, Monolith said that the shareholder is "another solar company" that is in a joint venture with a Monolith subsidiary called Solar Management Group. The shareholder has a 21 percent stake in SMG but won't have to guarantee the loan if it reduces its ownership stake to less than 20 percent. The shareholder, whom Pickett called a "silent partner," is located on the West Coast. "The negotiations have been going back and forth," Pickett told the IDA board. "We are signing all the legal documents in the next few weeks." Even if the SBA loan falls through, Pickett said, Monolith could still get a conventional loan through KeyBank. She said Monolith could still be able to close on the purchase of the land from Columbia Development by December, although IDA board members sounded skeptical. Pickett said that the company could put some of its state funding toward the equity it would need to pull together to get a conventional loan from KeyBank. An SBA loan requires only 10 percent equity. "We have a contingency plan," Pickett said. lrulison@timesunion.com 518-454-5504 @larryrulison Albany A city deli owner pleaded guilty Monday to possessing synthetic marijuana he intended to sell, according to the U.S. attorney's office in the Northern District of New York. Shukri Abdullah, 44, admitted that he had two garbage bags filled with hundreds of packets of the synthetic drug, also known as Spice or K2, and sold them to customers of Grand Deli in Albany, federal prosecutors said. In February, he was arraigned on an indictment charging him with possession with the intent to distribute synthetic cannabinoids. Abdullah also admitted to routinely purchasing large quantities of the substances from a New York City supplier, paying as much as $9,000 in cash for each shipment, prosecutors said. The deli owner faces up to 20 years in prison, but would likely face less under federal sentencing guidelines. afries@timesunion.com 518-454-5353 @mandy_fries For centuries the Irish have emigrated all over the world and named many of the places where they settled after towns and districts back home. Sizeable contingents from the same county would often flock to a particular area with the result that generations later, many of their descendants would claim to feel a deep connection and identification with the ancestral homeland even though most may have never visited there themselves. It's a fascinating and often under researched topic but one which is to be the subject of a forthcoming two-part documentary due to be aired on Tipp Mid West Radio when the connections between one such place in America and the Premier County are investigated. Tipperary Hill is a district in city of Syracuse, in Onondaga County in the state of New York. It's located roughly 300 miles inland from both New York City and Boston. Simply put, Tipperary Hill is purported to have got its name because of the sheer amount of immigrants who had settled there by 1860, that came not just from Ireland, but from Co. Tipperary. Not surprisingly the majority of these immigrants arrived during the Famine but the programme reveals that numbers also made the journey from Co. Tipperary during the Revolutionary War of the late 1700s and from 1817 onwards with the construction of the Erie Canal. Today Tipperary Hill is a thieving community with many of its residents extremely conscious and proud of their districts links to those who arrived from the Premier County. A large number of their descendants have also traced their ancestry back to particular areas with Cashel, Thurles, Upperchurch and Ballyporeen amongst the locations pinpointed by interviewees to the programme. In addition to investigating with American contributors what drew these early settlers from Co. Tipperary to the Syracuse area and how they fared when they got there, historians Des Marnane from Tipperary Town and Seamus King in Cashel offer an insight into the kind of place Co. Tipperary was to live, during the first half of the 19th century when the bulk of the emigration was taking place. Des Marnane, well-known for his extensive research into the Famine, also provides some heart wrenching eviction and emigration figures pertinent to the county for the period. The documentary also sheds light on the discrimination faced by the early Irish in the city of Syracuse and investigates the origins of the famous 'Upside Down Traffic Light' in Tipperary Hill which many link to the ancient practice of stone throwing associated with the Premier County. Part one of the revealing documentary entitled Conquering Tipperary Hill' by Tom Hurley is due to be aired on Tipp Mid West Radio on Monday next 7th of November at 11.30am. Part two will be broadcast at the same time on the following week. The programmes can be heard outside the county on www.tippmidwestradio.com. MEADVILLE State police, from the Meadville barracks, have arrested a 46-year-old Saegertown man in connection to a police pursuit over the w October 31, 2016 One of the defining characteristics of a leader in any industry is the ability to make oneself stand out in the crowd. For businesses, making your company stand out is essential to having a productive business, especially if the company becomes known on a global scale. It is for precisely this reason that Enghouse Systems Limited has decided to acquire Presence Technology (News - Alert), S.L. Enghouse, a provider of enterprise software solutions serving a variety of vertical markets, will be acquiring Presence for approximately $17.4 million (net of the cash acquired), subject to certain price adjustments and other considerations. For comparison, Presences annual revenue is about $13.2 million, so money wont be an issue going forward. Whats so appealing about Presence is that it has a major global audience. This matches perfectly with Enghouses (News - Alert) strategy to build a larger and more diverse enterprise software company through strategic acquisitions and managed growth within its business segments. Some of these segments include Contact Center, Networks (OSS/BSS) and Transportation/Public Safety. Enghouse shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:ESL). Presence fits this bill because it is headquartered in Spain and is a provider of multi-channel contact center software solutions with a specific focus on Spanish speaking markets. The product suitewhich provides Presences 200 clients with a flexible architecture to deploy contact center capabilities on premise, in the cloud or on a hybrid basisis available in English and Spanish, with end-user modules also available in Portuguese. This has enabled Presence to establish a leadership position in its core markets of Spain, the Americas and Sub-Saharan Africa. As if the global standing wasnt appealing enough to a company like Enghouse, Presences solutions are also consistently being recognized for quality and innovation. Most recently, the company received TMC (News - Alert) awards for Unified Communications and WebRTC Product of the Year. In addition, it has also been positioned in the Gartner's Magic Quadrant for Contact Center Infrastructure. For these reasons, Enghouse is excited to acquire Presence. The acquisition furthers our goal to build our global business with expansion into Spain, South Africa, Colombia, Mexico and Brazil, said Steve Sadler, Chairman and CEO of Enghouse. We are pleased to welcome Presence's employees, customers and partners. Presence is also looking forward to becoming part of the Enghouse team, with Araceli Aranda, CEO of Presence, saying, We are delighted to join Enghouse, and look forward to contributing to its successThe strengths of Enghouse and Presence are very complementary. Enghouse is a good home for our employees and will help us to better serve our customers and make further inroads in our markets. Edited by Stefania Viscusi Call Center Renaissance Means Big New Business for Nevada While the call center has never really been seen as an exciting, glamorous career choice, that's changed somewhat in recent years as businesses increasingly view call centers as less of a cash sink and more as a revenue generator. That's led to a lot of call center business returning to the United States, where there are several significant advantages. One big winner in this move has been Nevada, who's able to dictate labor prices to a degree, yet is still finding many interested takers. The average call center hourly wage is $14.86 an hour, reports note, as many of the new call centers setting up shop are specialist operations that require quite a bit of advanced training and specialized knowledge. It's reached a point where the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevadaaccording to remarks from its CEO Mike Kazemierskinoted that ...if you are not paying $15 an hour, good luck finding a workforce... There are some third-party centers in southern Nevada paying less, reports note, but it also features more workers competing for fewer jobs. Nevada's multilingual, multishift work forcewhich often speaks Spanish as well as English and doesn't have many qualms about working odd hours thanks to the famous casino presencegives it a real edge in this market, as does its status on the Pacific time zone, making it readily available to handle that business and often at lower costs than the equivalent in Oregon, Washington or California. It's not just the pay that's climbed in recent years; the amount of skill required has also gone up, and so too has status. Many don't even refer to call centers as call centers any more, instead favoring the term contact center. This term shows how the call center isn't just about phone calls any more, but rather about a complete range of contact methods starting with emails and text messages and going all the way around to phone calls. The call center market has fundamentally changed as more businesses pursue omnichannel strategies, opening up the floor for customers to contact a business via several methods, not just the simple standards of phone calls and emails. This means businesses need staffers who can handle a phone and a computer at the same time, who know how to research information and already have plenty of knowledge about a product line. That combination is increasingly valuable, thus leading to the kinds of wages we're seeing in Nevada. Changes to the market are yielding changes to the perception of the call center, and as businesses realize this is an effective tool to both create new customers and also keep the ones currently on hand, the value of a call center staffer will also increase. Edited by Alicia Young [October 31, 2016] Adelphic Partners with TripleLift to Unveil a Self-Serve Native Workflow WALTHAM, Mass., Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Adelphic, the leading mobile and cross-channel demand side platform (DSP), today announced a partnership with TripleLift, the largest programmatic native technology company. Together, they will provide ad buyers access to native inventory sources across all display channels. Buyers will be able to leverage Adelphic's leading targeting, optimization, and cross-channel capabilities to serve native image, video, and cinemagraph based ads in a fully self-serve workflow. Within the next five years, native advertisements will comprise nearly three-quarters of all display ad revenue in the U.S., driven in large part by innovations in programmatic technologies that make the format more scalable. Native delivers a better experience for consumers, which can drive marketers' ROI. According to data from TripleLift, advertisers have seen up to a 100 percent increase in CTR, three-times higher brand awareness, and 250 percent higher engagement when using native as opposed to traditional display formats. "Native has become a rapidly growing advertising strategy, particularly in mobile, where its success has been proven to drive increased consumer engagement," said Katie Glass, Head of Programmatic Partnerships at TripleLift. "As a mobile-first DSP with cross-channel technology, Adelphic provides ad buyers a unique opportunity to leverage that inceased engagement wherever audiences are consuming content." TripleLift's native ads create more meaningful user engagement and a better consumer experience. TripleLift serves non-intrusive ads within the flow of content, which ensures that there are fewer accidental clicks. This means Adelphic customers can be confident that their clicks are from real consumers with interest. With better and more integrated advertising experiences, consumers are not pushed to employ ad blockers. "Adelphic is excited to partner with TripleLift as we enhance our native offering to provide our customers with a robust set of tools that enable planning, forecasting, targeting, and reporting that empower our clients to scale their native campaigns," said Gina Kim, Head of Partnerships of Adelphic. "This partnership will undoubtedly bring our customers new formats and tactics to drive brand advertising." This is the fifth new partnership for Adelphic since June - building on their more than 40 inventory, data, and ad tech ecosystem integrations as they continue to expand both the depth and breadth of the platform. About TripleLift TripleLift makes native programmatic simple, scalable, and effective. Leveraging pioneering computer vision technology, TripleLift seamlessly transforms content like images, video, and cinemagraphs into engaging in-feed native ads that match the unique look and feel of a publisher's website. Accessible via the industry's first real-time, native programmatic exchange, TripleLift helps marketers reach millions of consumers across any device, at scale. Since 2012, TripleLift has delivered meaningful results for some of the world's biggest brands through what it calls the next evolution of display advertising. TripleLift was named 212 NYC and The New York Times Ad Tech Startup of the Year, and joined Forbes list of Most Promising Companies in America in 2015. For more information, please visit www.triplelift.com. About Adelphic Adelphic is the leading mobile and cross-channel demand side platform. Adelphic provides an enterprise-ready software solution for agencies, brands and other large media buyers to make meaningful engagements with consumers on the move. The company's platform is fully RTB-enabled and delivers global scale through access to all leading inventory providers. Adelphic's patented technology overcomes the limitations of user identification in mobile and across networked devices, yielding rich, nuanced portraits of real consumers. Founded in 2011, Adelphic is funded by Matrix Partners, Blue Chip Venture Company and Google Ventures. For more information, visit adelphic.com. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/adelphic-partners-with-triplelift-to-unveil-a-self-serve-native-workflow-300354048.html SOURCE Adelphic [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] As National Cyber Security Awareness Month Comes to a Close, Focus Shifts to Securing Our Nation's Critical Infrastructure WASHINGTON, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Critical infrastructure, which provides the essential services underlying American society and is the backbone of our economy, health and security relies heavily on the foundation provided by the internet. On the last day of National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM), which leads into Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience (CISR) Month, the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and their partners in industry, government and the nonprofit sector are spotlighting the importance of securing our nation's critical infrastructure and how individuals and organizations can help protect these vital networks from cyber threats. "Our critical infrastructure which consists of 16 sectors, including food and agriculture, energy, water, transportation and healthcare is fueled by the internet. Every day, through our smartphones, computers and other connected devices, we connect to the national grid without even realizing it," said Michael Kaiser, executive director of NCSA. "For example, you connect to the financial services sector when you conduct online banking. Throughout the day, engineers, scientists, car manufacturers, legislators and other industries interact with critical infrastructure when they use their organizations' networks to connect to the internet. With most Americans relying on the internet to conduct their business at home or at work, it's imperative that everyone use technology safely to protect not only themselves, but also the underpinnings of the systems that sustain our day-to-day lives." Following NCSAM Week 4, which highlighted the growing Internet of Things (IoT), this last day of October introduces CISR Month, which builds awareness and appreciation of the importance of critical infrastructure and reaffirms the nationwide commitment to keep it and our communities safe and secure. Protecting national infrastructure requires preparation and coordination across the entire country. "The risk would be very high if there were an attack on our critical infrastructure," said Kaiser, who pointed to a recently disclosed disruptive cyber attack on a nuclear power plant in Germany as an example. "Resistance is key, and so is responding to and being able to recover quickly from an attack." This year, the DHS Office of Infrastructure Protection is partnering with InfraGard of the National Capital Region (InfraGardNCR) to promote CISR Month. The month will highlight the following themes: Week 1: Our Connected Infrastructure cyber and physical interdependence Week 2: Hometown Security "Connect, Plan, Train, Report" Week 3: Partnering with the public and private sectors to build resilience Week 4: Fostering innovation and investment in resilient infrastructure To learn more about CISR Month and how you can get involved, visit the DHS website. NCSA recommends taking the following steps to protect yourself, your information, the larger community and our critical infrastructure this CISR Month and year-round: Lock Down Your Login : Fortify your online accounts by enabling the strongest authentication tools available, such as biometrics, security keys or a unique one-time code through an app on your mobile device. Your usernames and passwords are not enough to protect key accounts like email, banking and social media. : Fortify your online accounts by enabling the strongest authentication tools available, such as biometrics, security keys or a unique one-time code through an app on your mobile device. Your usernames and passwords are not enough to protect key accounts like email, banking and social media. Keep a clean machine : Keep all software on internet-connected devices including PCs, smartphones and tablets up to date to reduce risk of infection from malware. : Keep all software on internet-connected devices including PCs, smartphones and tablets up to date to reduce risk of infection from malware. When in doubt, throw it out : Cybercriminals often use links in email, social posts and texts to try to steal your personal information. Even if you know the source, if something looks suspicious, delete it. : Cybercriminals often use links in email, social posts and texts to try to steal your personal information. Even if you know the source, if something looks suspicious, delete it. Safer for me, more secure for all: What you do online has the potential to affect everyone at home, at work and around the world. Practicing good online habits benefits the global digital community. A NCSAM keystone event will be held today at the George Washington University (GW) in Washington, D.C. The event will emphasize the importance of cybersecurity to critical infrastructure and feature a panel discussion on public-private partnerships, which will highlight how government and industry work together to secure the internet and what the future of critical infrastructure protection may hold. Additionally, speakers will discuss the high demand for cybersecurity professionals, the exponential growth of the cyber sector, opportunities that exist for cybersecurity training and the career paths available. The esteemed group of panelists include cybersecurity and workforce experts from DHS, Cisco, Tripwire and NCSA. Learn more and RSVP here. The event will be livestreamed on the NCSA Facebook page. Although NCSAM 2016 is ending, the need for cybersecurityawareness and understanding the implications of our online actions continues. NCSA works continuously to promote a safer, more secure and more trusted internet by educating the public about how they can protect themselves, their families and the greater digital community online. It's important to continue to think about online safety year-round and in all facets of daily life, from the upcoming holiday shopping and travel season to Data Privacy Day on Jan. 28 to tax and wedding seasons next spring. To learn how you can be safer online every day, check out the resources and tips on staysafeonline.org and sign up for NCSA's mailing list to get updates and helpful materials all year long. NCSAM Week 5 Resources for Building Resilience in Critical Systems DHS Critical Infrastructure Cyber Community ( C) Voluntary Program : This no-cost program helps organizations of all sizes and in all industries combat the cyber threat. C supports industry in increasing cyber resilience by promoting awareness and the use of the National Institute for Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework. : This no-cost program helps organizations of all sizes and in all industries combat the cyber threat. C supports industry in increasing cyber resilience by promoting awareness and the use of the National Institute for Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework. HIMSS Innovation Center Cybersecurity Hub : HIMSS' Cybersecurity Hub, which debuted on Oct. 25 at the HIMSS Innovation Center in Cleveland, OH , is an in-person immersive exhibit presenting innovative technologies, content and education through a series of interactive modules on ransomware, advanced attacks and data breaches. HIMSS' Cybersecurity Hub, which debuted on at the HIMSS Innovation Center in , is an in-person immersive exhibit presenting innovative technologies, content and education through a series of interactive modules on ransomware, advanced attacks and data breaches. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework: The NIST Framework, which was created through collaboration between industry and government, consists of standards, guidelines and practices to promote the protection of critical infrastructure. The framework's prioritized, flexible, repeatable and cost-effective approach helps owners and operators of critical infrastructure manage cybersecurity-related risk. Materials to Help You Stay Safer Online Year-Round DHS Stop. Think. Connect. Resources : DHS' Stop. Think. Connect. page shares cyber tips and resources, ways to get involved with the global online safety awareness campaign, toolkits for all segments of the community, videos, promotional materials and more. : DHS' Stop. Think. Connect. page shares cyber tips and resources, ways to get involved with the global online safety awareness campaign, toolkits for all segments of the community, videos, promotional materials and more. BBB Cybersecurity : The Council of Better Business Bureaus (BBB) has created a business education resource to provide small and medium-sized businesses with valuable tools, tips and content to help them manage cyber risks and learn about cybersecurity best practices in the modern business environment. : The Council of Better Business Bureaus (BBB) has created a business education resource to provide small and medium-sized businesses with valuable tools, tips and content to help them manage cyber risks and learn about cybersecurity best practices in the modern business environment. ConnectSafely.org : ConnectSafely works to help people get the most from their technology while managing the risks and help decision makers craft sensible policies that encourage both innovation and responsible use. Here you'll find research-based safety tips, parents' guidebooks, advice, news and commentary on all aspects of tech use and policy. : ConnectSafely works to help people get the most from their technology while managing the risks and help decision makers craft sensible policies that encourage both innovation and responsible use. Here you'll find research-based safety tips, parents' guidebooks, advice, news and commentary on all aspects of tech use and policy. #CyberAware Newsletter : #CyberAware is a monthly newsletter created for parents by NCSA. Each month, the newsletter shares family online safety news and resources and the latest from the Stay Safe Online blog. #CyberAware is a monthly newsletter created for parents by NCSA. Each month, the newsletter shares family online safety news and resources and the latest from the Stay Safe Online blog. LockDownYourLogin.com : Usernames and passwords are no longer enough to keep your accounts secure. Anyone with your username and password can access your account. Visit LockDownYourLogin.com to easily learn how to move beyond the password and better secure your online accounts. Usernames and passwords are no longer enough to keep your accounts secure. Anyone with your username and password can access your account. Visit LockDownYourLogin.com to easily learn how to move beyond the password and better secure your online accounts. OnGuardOnline: The U.S. Federal Trade Commission's OnGuardOnline portal provides news, tips, resources, videos and more to help you, your family and the larger community stay safer and more secure online. Upcoming NCSAM and CISR Month Events National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Conference & Expo 2016, Tuesday, Nov. 1 Wednesday, Nov. 2 , Westin Kansas City Crown Center, Kansas City, MO : The NICE 2016 Conference and Expo features thought leaders from education, government, industry and nonprofits who are addressing the cybersecurity education, training and workforce needs of the nation. This two-day event includes face-to-face convening of public-private partners, an opportunity to signal NICE strategic directions and priorities and a forum to showcase best practices. Learn more here. The NICE 2016 Conference and Expo features thought leaders from education, government, industry and nonprofits who are addressing the cybersecurity education, training and workforce needs of the nation. This two-day event includes face-to-face convening of public-private partners, an opportunity to signal NICE strategic directions and priorities and a forum to showcase best practices. Learn more here. #ChatSTC Twitter Chat: Building Cyber Resilience in Critical Infrastructure, Thursday, Nov. 3 , 3:00 p.m. EDT / noon PDT : As NCSAM comes to a close, National CISR Month begins in November. In this #ChatSTC, we'll discuss the connection between the cyber and physical worlds and the importance of protecting and securing our nation's critical infrastructure and share simple cyber tips for individuals looking to do their part to protect our critical infrastructure from cyber threats. Use #ChatSTC to join! You can follow the NCSAM conversation this week on social media using the hashtag #CyberAware (and tagging your own posts with #CyberAware, too!). Additionally, on this last day of October you can show your support for NCSAM by sharing memes, posters and more on social media and/or by registering as a NCSAM Champion. All year round, you can easily integrate STOP. THINK. CONNECT. into your awareness and education efforts by becoming a STOP. THINK. CONNECT. partner. Thank you to the 1,290 organizations and individuals supporting NCSAM 2016 as Champions and the more than 535 organizations around the world who have taken part in the STOP. THINK. CONNECT. campaign by registering as partners. Finally, check out the Stay Safe Online blog for NCSAM posts from NCSA and partners, and cybersecurity and privacy tips and resources throughout the year. About National Cyber Security Awareness Month National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) was created as a collaborative effort between government and industry to ensure every American has the resources they need to stay safer and more secure online. Now in its 13th year, NCSAM is co-founded and co-led by the U. S. Department of Homeland Security and the National Cyber Security Alliance, the nation's leading nonprofit public-private partnership promoting the safe and secure use of the Internet and digital privacy. Recognized annually in October, NCSAM involves the participation of a multitude of industry leaders ? mobilizing individuals, small and medium-sized businesses, nonprofits, academia, multinational corporations and governments. Encouraging digital citizens around the globe to STOP. THINK. CONNECT., NCSAM is harnessing the collective impact of its programs and resources to increase awareness about today's ever-evolving cybersecurity landscape. Visit the NCSA media room to learn more. About the National Cyber Security Alliance The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) is the nation's leading nonprofit, public-private partnership promoting cybersecurity and privacy education and awareness. NCSA works with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and NCSA's Board of Directors, which includes representatives from ADP; AT&T Services, Inc.; Bank of America; Barclays; BlackBerry Corporation; Cisco; Comcast Corporation; ESET North America; Facebook; Google; Intel Corporation; Logical Operations; Microsoft Corp.; NXP Semiconductors; PayPal; PKWARE; Raytheon; RSA, the Security Division of EMC; Salesforce; SANS Institute; Symantec and Visa Inc. NCSA's core efforts include National Cyber Security Awareness Month (October), Data Privacy Day (January 28) and STOP. THINK. CONNECT., the global online safety awareness and education campaign cofounded by NCSA and the Anti Phishing Working Group, with federal government leadership from DHS. For more information on NCSA, please visit staysafeonline.org/about-us/overview/. About STOP. THINK. CONNECT. STOP. THINK. CONNECT. is the global cybersecurity education and awareness campaign. The campaign was created by an unprecedented coalition of private companies, nonprofits and government organizations with leadership provided by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG). The U.S. Department of Homeland Security leads the federal engagement in the campaign. Learn how to get involved at stopthinkconnect.org. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111007/DC82477LOGO Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121004/DC87170LOGO-a Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131212/DC32528LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/as-national-cyber-security-awareness-month-comes-to-a-close-focus-shifts-to-securing-our-nations-critical-infrastructure-300353919.html SOURCE National Cyber Security Alliance [October 30, 2016] China-based Property Developer Zall Group Becomes Controlling Shareholder of Leading Chinese Agricultural E-commerce Platform WUHAN, China, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Zall Group chairman Yan Zhi and Shenzhen SinoAgri E-Commerce Co., Ltd. chairman David Wei signed an agreement on October 28th, whereby Zall Group purchased a 60.49% equity stake in SinoAgri E-Commerce. Becoming a controlling shareholder of China's biggest business-to-business (B2B) agricultural products trading platform means that Zall Group has joined the club of online businesses valued at one hundred billion HKD or more, with the intention of becoming the biggest B2B online platform in China. Following the purchase, rather than continuing in the role of independent board member, Mr. Wei will step in as executive board member and chief strategy officer for Zall Group, while remaining board chairman of SinoAgri E-Commerce. Mr. Yan said at the signing that as a result of the cooperation with internet business experts Yu Gang and Mr. Wei, Zall Group is now confident that it can become the largest online trading platform worldwide and China's largest B2B online trading services provider, creating a new ecosystem for Chinese online businesses and transactions. Mr. Wei revealed that profound changes have taken place within Zall Group and that the transition to ecommerce has already delivered remarkable results. Alibaba is the biggest B2B platform today, whose major function, however, is the provision of information rather than providing a platform for the execution of the trade itself and that is not enough for goods such as agricultural products that have a high dependence on logistics and finance. In the past 5 years, SinoAgri E-Commerce has become the go-to venue for B2B ecommerce in agricultural products. To date, in terms of online transactions, the trading of sugar is far more advanced than that of other products, with at least one third of the sugar that is consumed in China being ordered, sold and delivered via SinoAgri E-Commerce. Mr. Wei believes the cooperation beween Zall Group and SinoAgri E-Commerce in terms of finance, the management team and the level of business that can be expected, will exceed the traditional "1 plus 1 equals more than 2" effect when the businesses are merged, with the likelihood of generating a "1 plus 1 equals more than 10" level of synergy. Shenzhen SinoAgri E-Commerce Co., Ltd. was founded in 2011 as a trading and service platform for manufacturers in the agriculture industrial chain. For a long time the firm led in the market share of sugar trading and gradually moved into the trade of other agricultural products including raw silk, fruit and kneading boards, with annual transactions now surpassing 100 billion HKD (approx. $US13 billion). As the pioneer of vertical ecommerce in China, SinoAgri E-Commerce has formed a diverse income structure including transactions, trading, finance, storage and logistics, which has been consistently profitable and is now demonstrating rapid and stable growth. In 2015, SinoAgri E-Commerce achieved 12.7 billion HKD (approx. $US1.6 billion) from its core business with more 4 million tons of spot settlements for agricultural products and 7 billion HKD (approx. $US900 million) of supply chain finance investment. Former Alibaba CEO David Wei became the chairman of the board of SinoAgri E-Commerce. Zall Group focuses on supply chain business and trading services for the wholesale market, providing clients with property, logistics, storage, finance, online transaction and big data services. Since earlier this year, Zall Group speeded up the pace of additions to the portfolio in the online B2B sector, with a series of moves that have drawn a lot of attention. After becoming the largest shareholder of LightinTheBox Holding Co., Ltd. and building the first combined online-to-offline domestic and foreign trading platform in China, purchasing Harvest Financial Information Services (Hangzhou) Co., Ltd. to establish Prominent Investment Holding Ltd., and joining hands with Sinovation Ventures to set up Zall Innovative Intelligent Trading Industry Fund, an advanced, intelligent commercial ecosystem has begun to take shape. At present, transactions on the group's online wholesale platform have exceeded 37 billion HKD (approx. $US 4.8 billion), placing Zall Group among the top ecommerce companies in China. Becoming the controlling shareholder of SinoAgri E-Commerce gave Zall Group the capabilities to provide ancillary services to hundreds of billions of B2B online transactions and become one of the top 10 internet companies in China. Zall Group has, to date, created 9 major trading and services platforms: the comprehensive ecommerce trading platform zallgo.com forming the core, three vertical ecommerce platforms which includes SinoAgri E-Commerce, the international online trading platform LightinTheBox Holding Co., Ltd., the industrial chain logistics service provider zallsoon, storage service provider zallfuhui and financial services provider Zall Financial Information Services (Wuhan) Co., Ltd. and jia16.com. Zall Group sits at the helm as it continues to build the largest industrial online trading and services system in China. An industry-focused business based on B2B trading, logistics and financial services shows bigger potential than that of the consumer online market and is expected to become a major competitive market within 10 years. Led by Mr. Yan, with online business experts Messrs. Yu and Wei on the team, Zall Group has completed quite a few large acquisitions this year and does not expect its efforts at expansion to end anytime soon, reflecting the apparent dynamism of the online B2B sector and the group's foresight in being the first to make a significant move into the industry. The mature business model and profitability of SinoAgri E-Commerce have served as a good example for as well as encouraged the ongoing explosive increase in B2B systems in China. The synergy that is being created by combining the talented and mature team along with the rich experience in supply chain services that SinoAgri E-Commerce has brought to the table with the intelligent trading ecosystem of Zall Group places the group in an excellent position to be the firm that delivers on building the largest B2B trading services system in China. Photo - http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20161028/0861611292 [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Ficosa opens a new state-of-the-art plant in Tennessee DETROIT, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ficosa, a top-tier global provider devoted to the research, development, manufacturing and marketing of high-technology vision, safety, connectivity and efficiency systems for the automotive and mobility sectors, has boosted its presence in the United States by opening a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Cookeville, Tennessee. With an investment of over 50 million dollars, the new plant is equipped with the sector's latest technology, becoming the most advanced in Ficosa's global portfolio. The Cookeville facility, which has a total surface area of 270,000 square feet, is dedicated to producing rear view systems for automotive manufacturers such as Nissan, Ford, Volkswagen, Fiat Chrysler and General Motors. As a leader in painting and injection processes, the plant has an average production capacity of 4.5 million rear view mirrors and will add nearly 500 new and advanced manufacturing jobs in the U.S. and Tennessee. This cutting-edge production center, whose construction started in June 2015, celebrated its grand opening last Friday, October 28, with the presence of Rep. Diane Black, Cookeville ity Mayor Ricky Shelton, Putnam County Executive Randy Porter, and other main authorities of the area and key automotive manufacturers. "Today marks a great day for Ficosa and Tennessee," said Javier Pujol, CEO of Ficosa, during the event. "This new facility is a strategic move that allows the consolidation of key operations and enables a further future growth in one of the largest automobile markets in the world, where Ficosa has been present since 1994. By opening these new premises we are not only improving the group's efficiency and operational capacity in the region, but also reinforcing our commitment to bring more advanced manufacturing jobs to the U.S. and to help lay the foundation for a more successful manufacturing future in the state of Tennessee." The new plant is bringing hundreds of new jobs to Cookeville, with new job positions opening up daily, from production and project managers, technicians and engineers, to human resource specialists and assembly and warehouse workers. Those who are interested in applying for a job should send their resumes to [email protected]. In addition, Javier Pujol explained that the Cookeville's facility also strengthens the company's business alliance with Panasonic which started in 2015 in North America (United States and Mexico). "We are boosting a plan to align the industrial strategy of Ficosa with Panasonic in the region of North America, in order to accelerate the launch of new products in the areas of connectivity, efficiency and safety. This plan allows us to support the growth of the local market and increase our capacity in R&D in mirrors, shifters and new technologies that we are developing together with Panasonic, bringing together our technological capabilities with the know-how in electronics of the Japanese company." In June 2016, Ficosa North America was awarded four contracts from two American OEMs to produce 8,900,000 units of rear-view mirrors over a period of five years. Three of the four orders will be produced at the new Cookeville's plant, with an estimated economic value of 460 million dollars. Production on those contracts is scheduled to start first quarter of 2018. About Ficosa North America Ficosa International began operating in the United States in 1995, through a technical-commercial office in Michigan. Since then, the company has expanded its capacities for the development of projects for the North American market, with the creation of a test laboratory in 1996, a CAD department in 1997, and a prototype laboratory in 1998. In 2000, Ficosa North America consolidated its engineering center with a new headquarters in Madison Heights, Michigan. About Ficosa International Ficosa is a global company devoted to the creation of high-technology vision, safety, efficiency and connectivity solutions for the industry, with the desire to contribute to society through our commitment to technological innovation, human values and energy efficiency. Founded in 1949 and based in Barcelona, Ficosa currently has more than 9,700 employees in 18 countries worldwide in Europe, North and South America and Asia, with consolidated sales of 1.112 billion euros in 2015. The rear view system (interior/side mirror) is Ficosa's main business, known worldwide and recognized by top global OEMs. For more information, visit www.ficosa.com. MEDIA CONTACT: Heather Ripley Ripley PR 865-977-1973 [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/434011 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ficosa-opens-a-new-state-of-the-art-plant-in-tennessee-300353730.html SOURCE Ficosa [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy and Southern Nuclear to Collaborate on Advanced Reactor Development and Licensing GE Hitachi (News - Alert) Nuclear Energy (GEH) and Southern Nuclear have agreed to collaborate in studying the development and licensing of advanced reactors including GEH's PRISM sodium-cooled fast reactor design. "Southern Nuclear's operational experience, technical expertise and leadership in innovation are significant strengths that will benefit our work together to support the commercialization of advanced nuclear reactor technology," said Jay Wileman, president and CEO, GEH. "With a design that can extract energy from used nuclear fuel to generate electricity, our PRISM advanced reactor technology is a game-changer." In a Memorandum of Understanding signed by GEH and Southern Nuclear Development, a subsidiary of Southern Nuclear Operating Company, the companies have also agreed to work together toward participating in future U.S. Department of Energy advanced reactor licensing projects. "The relationship with GE Hitachi is an exciting step on our continued journey towards maintaining nuclear energy's key position in providing clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy for future generations," said Stephen Kuczynski, chairman, president and CEO, Southern Nuclear. "We are fully committed to moving the industry forward, and by pursuing this goal together, we are best able to leverage our combined strengths in research and commercial operations to bring advanced nuclear technology to market." PRISM is a sodium-cooled, high energy neutron (fast) reactor design which uses a series of proven, safe and mature technologies developed both in the U.S. and abroad. The PRISM design has benefited from the operating experience of EBR-II, an integral fast reactor prototype which was developed by Argonne National Laboratory and operated for more than 30 years in Idaho Falls, Idaho. GEH believes that no U.S. fast spectrum reactor technology has more testing, design or operational experience than PRISM. On ths basis, PRISM seems well positioned to continue the licensing process and to generally provide a critical regulatory path for licensing of other advanced reactor technology in the U.S. According to an analysis performed by GEH, which assumes a quantity of 178,000 metric tons of nuclear material contained in used fuel stocks worldwide, by using PRISM technology on a commercialized basis, all the world's used fuel could eventually be consumed while at the same time providing enough clean, carbon-free energy to power all global households, (estimated at approximately 1.6 billion living units) for as long as 200 years, based on a per household consumption of 3,400 kWh/year. About GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy Based in Wilmington, N.C., GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) is a world-leading provider of advanced reactors and nuclear services. Established in 2007, GEH is a global nuclear alliance created by GE and Hitachi to serve the global nuclear industry. The nuclear alliance executes a single, strategic vision to create a broader portfolio of solutions, expanding its capabilities for new reactor and service opportunities. The alliance offers customers around the world the technological leadership required to effectively enhance reactor performance, power output and safety. Follow GEH on LinkedIn (News - Alert) and Twitter @gehnuclear. About Southern Nuclear Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), is a leader among the nation's nuclear energy facility operators and an innovator in advanced nuclear technologies. Southern Nuclear is an essential part of Southern Company's energy portfolio, and its importance will continue to grow as America transitions to a low-carbon energy future. While the company produces clean, safe and reliable nuclear energy, it's also an economic engine powered by quality jobs and community service. Southern Nuclear operates a total of six units for Alabama Power and Georgia Power at the Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant near Dothan, Ala.; the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, Ga.; and the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant near Waynesboro, Ga. Southern Nuclear is the licensee of two new nuclear units currently under construction at Plant Vogtle that are among the first nuclear units being constructed in the United States in more than 30 years. Southern Nuclear has received numerous accolades in 2016 for leadership in the advancement of nuclear energy including the Special Achievement Award by the United States Nuclear Infrastructure Council and the Presidential Citation by the American Nuclear Society. Southern Nuclear also received two of the Nuclear Energy Institute's Top Innovative Practice awards and a special recognition for achieving excellence in research and performance. Southern Nuclear's Plant Hatch received the ANS (News - Alert) Operations & Power Division's Utility Achievement Award for plant improvements that resulted in a record-setting refueling outage duration. The company's headquarters is in Birmingham, Ala. Twitter (News - Alert): @SouthernNuclear; Facebook: facebook.com/southernnuclear; www.southerncompany.com/southernnuclear View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005256/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Government of Canada Approves the 2017 NOVA Gas Transmission Ltd. System Expansion Project OTTAWA, Oct. 31, 2016 /CNW/ - The development of our natural resources creates middle-class jobs, spurs innovation and contributes to the quality of life of Canadians. Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Jim Carr, today announced the Government of Canada's decision to approve the 2017 NOVA Gas Transmission Ltd. (NGTL) System Expansion Project, subject to 36 binding conditions. The $1.3-billion 2017 NGTL project will create up to 3,000 jobs during construction, address the need for increased natural gas transmission capacity along the existing NGTL system and support economic growth in Alberta and across the country. More than 90 percent of the project will parallel existing roads and pipelines. In January, the Government announced a set of interim principles to guide decisions on major projects already being reviewed while longer-term reforms to regulatory processes are underway. The 2017 NGTL project was assessed using the interim principles. In making its decision, the Goverment took into consideration the National Energy Board's recommendation report on the project, Environment and Climate Change Canada's assessment of upstream greenhouse gas emissions, the views of Canadians gathered through an online questionnaire and enhanced consultations with Indigenous peoples. The outcomes of all of these processes are available to Canadians. Quick Facts The project involves the construction and operation of new gas pipeline facilities in northern Alberta as part of its existing NGTL System. as part of its existing NGTL System. The expansion includes five pipeline section loops, totaling approximately 230 kilometres, and the addition of two compressor station units. Approximately 91 percent of the project will parallel existing pipelines and roads. Quote "The twin imperatives of economic prosperity and environmental protection guided us in our decision-making and I am confident the right decision was made in the interest of Canadians and that this project supports the principles of sustainable development." Jim Carr, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources Related Documents The following documents are available at Natural Resources Canada's new Energy Pipeline Projects page: https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/resources/19120. National Energy Board Report Review of Related Upstream Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimates Online Questionnaire Report Crown Consultation and Accommodation Report Follow us on Twitter: @NRCan (http://twitter.com/nrcan) NRCan's news releases and backgrounders are available at www.news.gc.ca. SOURCE Natural Resources Canada [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Helen Doron Kindergarten Programme Launches for Children in Ukraine MISGAV, Israel, October 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Tikva Children's Homes in Odessa has selected Helen Doron Kindergarten to meet the needs of their children's early education. Helen Doron Kindergarten offers a unique programme for young children ages 2-6 years. Created by Helen Doron, linguist and pioneer of the Helen Doron method and developed by leading experts in early childhood education, the programme provides an enriching and stimulating learning environment for each child encouraging them to reach their full potential. In search of an exceptional educational programme, Tikva approached Vera Chub, National Coordinator for the Ukraine and Odessa's Master Franchisor. "The Helen Doron methodology is a perfect fit for Tikva, which provides children with a warm, compassionate environment, essential social services and quality education. Providing quality education within a nurturing framework is where Helen Doron Kindergartens can make a significant impact," said Chub. "Our multidisciplinary programme combines the higest quality English-enriched education with teaching important life skills, values and building self-esteem." In August 2016, Tikva signed a 3-year contract with the Helen Doron Educational Group to offer over 100 children a complete programme in which they will learn English, maths, fitness, art, science and multilingualism. Helen Doron Educational Group will train Odessa's Helen Doron English teachers in the exclusive Helen Doron kindergarten methodology, provide student and classroom learning sets and complete twice-yearly quality assurance visits to each classroom teacher. Annual Teacher Training Courses will ensure teachers are well-prepared to teach each age level. "Helen Doron Kindergarten programme was developed so that every student will develop the skills needed for a lifetime of achievement," commented Founder and CEO, Helen Doron. "We are pleased we have the opportunity to work with Tikva and hope to bring this programme model to other communities worldwide." The Helen Doron Educational Group stands at the forefront of innovative educational systems, providing exclusive learning programmes and quality educational materials for babies, children and adolescents the world over since 1985. The company's flagship franchise, Helen Doron English, along with Helen Doron Kindergarten, MathRiders, Ready Steady Move! franchises today encompass 900 learning centres in 36 countries in Europe, Asia, Mexico and South America. Today, more than two million children have learnt with the unique Helen Doron methodology. The Helen Doron Educational Group invites entrepreneurs to join a successful business operation. Visit us at http://www.helendorongroup.com. Contact Marilyn Glazier Social Media Manager +972-523858518 [email protected] [October 31, 2016] Iatric Systems Applauds Federal Appeals Court Decision Affirming Dismissal of Patent Lawsuit Iatric Systems, Inc., applauds the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to affirm a lower court's dismissal of a patent infringement lawsuit filed against it. The federal court in Florida, where the lawsuit [8:14-CV-02685] was filed, dismissed the lawsuit, holding that the asserted patent is directed to concepts (namely, detecting fraud and misuse of protected health information) that are not protectable under the patent laws. "Iatric Systems has been proactively monitoring, identifying and alerting providers to potential privacy violations since at least as early as 2003, well before the patent in question entered the application process," said Frank Fortner, President of Iatric Systems. "The lawsuit was dismissed prior to trial on these fundamental grounds, and we have achieved our goa of enhancing the prospects for a fair competitive environment." About Iatric Systems Iatric Systems is a healthcare technology company dedicated to helping healthcare organizations enhance their IT investments. We do so with our diverse healthcare experience, an extensive partner network, and our proven capabilities in patient privacy, analytics, EHR optimization, and interoperability. For more than 25 years, Iatric Systems has delivered solutions to more than 1,300 healthcare organizations. For more information, contact [email protected] or visit www.iatric.com. Connect with Iatric Systems on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031006033/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] MyDx Attending Three November Industry and Investor Conferences; CEO Yazbeck to Present on Cannabis Industry Panel November 16 LA JOLLA, Calif., Oct. 31, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MyDx, Inc. (OTCQB:MYDX), a rapidly growing chemical detection company and makers of MyDx, the first handheld chemical analyzer for consumers, today announced it will present at two, high profile investor conferences this month: the Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal to be held from November 7-10, and the World of Cannabis Summit in Las Vegas from November 15-16. Additionally, MyDx Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Daniel R. Yazbeck will be attending the ArcView Group meeting November 14-15 in Las Vegas. ArcView is the legal cannabis industry's premier hub for ?investment, data and progress. Mr. Yazbeck is being featured in the new 2016 Cannabis Investor Study co-published and co-produced by ArcView Market Research and New Frontier Data. An investor member since 2013, he is one of only three cannabis company leaders featured with an Entrepreneur Q&A interview published in the 55-page Report. The Vote Heard Round the Word: Cannabis Industry Anticipates November 8, Election These upcoming events hold special importance as the cannabis industry is highly anticipating the November 8, vote in nine States with ballot initiatives to legalize cannabis in some regulatory form, five of whom including California are asking voters to approve recreational use. The New York Times reports: The market for both recreational and medicinal marijuana is projected to grow to $22 billion in four years from $7 billion this year if California says yes, according to projections by the ArcView Group, a company that links investors with cannabis companies. This is the vote heard round the world, said ArcViews chief executive, Troy Dayton. What weve seen before has been tiny compared to what we are going to see in California. World of Cannabis Summit, Las Vegas At the World of Cannabis Summit, MyDx will host a booth on the main exhibitor floor. Also, Mr. Yazbeck will present on the panel titled, Funding your Business on November 16, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. PST, where he will be joined by the other two panel members Keith McCarty, CEO and Founder o Eaze, offering a leading cannabis delivery service App which just raised $13 million in its Series B round, and Randy Shipley, President of MJIC, a leader in media and professional services in the cannabis industry. There, Mr. Yazbeck will share his unique insights and expertise from his success leading MyDx from a crowdfunded startup to rapidly growing public company already nearing positive cash flow. For more information, visit: http://worldofcannabissummit.com/about/. The Company last week announced it has launched its OrganaDx sensor chip. The Companys CannaDxTM Sensor chip enables consumers to test, analyze and evaluate cannabis for potency and composition of psychoactive, and non-psychoactive medicinal, chemical components. Its newly launched OrganaDx sensor enables consumers to test cannabis for safety. The groundwater under any crop may be contaminated and many growers, both indoor and outdoor, use pesticides or fertilizers that contain dangerous toxins as the media routinely confirms. Web Summit, Lisbon, Portugal: Europes Largest Technology Marketplace Known as Europes Largest Technology Marketplace, the Web Summit is home to many independent conferences (https://websummit.net/). This event provides MyDx a unique opportunity to introduce its growing product line directly to a wide range of prospective partners and customers at the highest levels of industry and technology worldwide. With over 50,000 tech CEOs, founders, startups, investors and political leaders already booked, a sampling of attending global brand luminaries includes: Facebook CMO Gary Briggs, Groupon CEO Rich Williams, Spotify CMO Seth Farbman, Forbes President Mike Perlis, Burning Man Project Founding Board Member Marian Goodell, Tinder Co-Founder and CEO Sean Rad, and Google Ventures General Partner Tom Hulme. Cannabis Industry attendees include Merry Jane & Stampede Founder and CEO Ted Chung, and Privateer Holdings CEO Brendan Kenney. For a complete list of featured attendees, visit https://websummit.net/speakers. Media covering this event include The Guardian, CNN Money, Bloomberg, Tech Crunch, Time Magazine, Wired Magazine and many others. MyDx will host a booth in a Web Summit exhibitor hall throughout the conference. MyDx was also selected as 1 of 45 companies (1500+ startups attending) by an Independent Panel of IoT and Hardware Specialists to demonstrate its multi-purpose Analyzer, with smart phone app and its growing line of sensors, to a live audience of key global brands on the Web Summit Machine Demo Stage on Thursday, November 10 at 1:15 p.m. GMT. MyDx: Brand Building at the Global Level At all three conferences, a member of the MyDx team will be available to meet with institutional investors and industry leaders interested in collaborating on global distribution, marketing and other strategic ventures. To schedule a meeting, please contact Phillip Sugarman at Investor Relations Partners, the Companys IR counsel of record, at 818-280-6800. About MyDx, Inc. MyDx, Inc. (OTCQB:MYDX) is a chemical detection and sensor technology company based in San Diego, California whose mission is to help people Trust & Verify what they put into their minds and bodies. The Company developed MyDx, a patented, affordable portable analyzer that provides real-time chemical analysis and fits in the palm of the users hand. The multi-use MyDx analyzer leverages over a decade of established chemical detection technology to measure chemicals of interest. The Company owns a substantial and growing intellectual property portfolio of patents covering its technology. The MyDx CannaDxTM AquaDxTM and OrganaDxTM Sensors are now commercialized, and the AeroDxTM application is next in line. All Sensors will be compatible with a MyDx App that empowers consumers to test the chemical composition of what they eat, drink and inhale. For more information, please visit www.cdxlife.com. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined in Section 27(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements may contain certain forward-looking statements pertaining to future anticipated or projected plans, performance and developments, as well as other statements relating to future operations and results. Any statements in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be considered to be forward-looking statements. Words such as "may," "will," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "intends," "goal," "objective," "seek," "attempt," or variations of these or similar words, identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements by their nature are estimates of future results only and involve substantial risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to risks associated with the uncertainty of future financial results, additional financing requirements, development of new products, our ability to complete our product testing and launch our product commercially, the acceptance of our product in the marketplace, the uncertainty of the laws and regulations relating to cannabis, the impact of competitive products or pricing, technological changes, the effect of economic conditions and other uncertainties detailed from time to time in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at http://ir.cdxlife.com/all-sec-filings or www.sec.gov. Investor Contact: Phillip Sugarman, Vice President Investor Relations Partners Phone: 818-280-6800 [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Procter & Gamble Files Lawsuit Against Vi-Jon, Inc. The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee against Vi-Jon, Inc., a manufacturer of personal care products. The lawsuit focuses on Vi-Jon's store brand dandruff shampoos, which are sold in major retail outlets throughout the U.S. The complaint alleges that Vi-Jon bottles sold in Dollar General, CVS and Kroger mimic the shape, colors and label of Head & Shoulders, the leader of the dandruff category and the world's #1 shampoo, in a way that infringes its trade dress. "We invest heavily in all aspects of our product, and its appearance has become inextricably linked with what we stand for to our consumers," said Deborah P. Majoras, Chief Legal Officer of P&G. "When a competitor makes products that come too close to our legally protected trademarks and trade dress, it's unfair to consumers, and to our employees and shareholders, and we wil challenge those violations." With over 50 years of proven scalp care technology and success, Head & Shoulders has emerged as the leader in dandruff protection and is the world's #1 shampoo, used by 1.3 billion people across 140 countries. With over 200 Clinical studies, Head & Shoulders is the most tested1 and most trusted dandruff shampoo.2 About Procter & Gamble P&G serves consumers around the world with one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Always, Ambi Pur, Ariel, Bounty, Charmin, Crest, Dawn, Downy, Fairy, Febreze, Gain, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Lenor, Olay, Oral-B, Pampers, Pantene, SK-II, Tide, Vicks, and Whisper. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 70 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and information about P&G and its brands. 1 Based on published studies 2 P&G calculation based on Nielsen sales information July 2012-June 2013 View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005644/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Publisher Monetization Research Group Establishes Japan Publisher Alliance on Digital to Launch Private Marketplaces Powered by PubMatic PubMatic, the automation solutions company for an open digital media industry, announced today that the "Publisher Monetization Research Group" (PMRG), of which PubMatic is a member, has established the "Japan Publisher Alliance on Digital" (J-PADTM), an alliance of Japanese and international publishers allowing brands to access a highly desirable audience through exclusive Private Marketplace (PMP) inventory via PubMatic's revenue management platform, SEVEN (News - Alert). Initially, J-PAD will launch with six of Japan's premium publishers as founding members, including AFPBB News, Forbes JAPAN, JBpress, Mediagene, Perform Group, and Toyo Keizai. The Japanese digital advertising market has been expanding over the past several years. Expenditures for performance-based advertising1 amounted to 622.6 billion (Y2Y up 21.9%)2. However, the low CPMs in Japan indicate that digital advertising is still very much seen as a direct response mechanism. PubMatic's internal research3 shows that Japanese CPMs are only about one third of those in the US. The growth of PMP and establishment of premium publisher alliances such as J-PAD should create an environment for more branding budgets to be spent programmatically, thereby increasing the value that advertisers place on programmatic advertising, and in turn provide Japanese publishers with the higher returns that their global peers attract. J-PAD will launch as part of an effort to rectify the imbalance in the Japanese market by building a scalable solution that addresses the needs of both marketers and publishers in the region. "J-PAD will provide a solution for marketers and media buyers to programmatically access the sought after audiences of some of Japan's most premium publishers in a transparent, seamless and efficient manner. This will negate the need to set up multiple campaigns whilst at the same time delivering the reach that will fulfill large scale campaigns," said Ryuji Yokoyama, Chairperson of PMRG and CEO of Digital Intelligene Inc. Mr. Tatsuki Serizawa, a board member of PMRG and CSO of Mediagene Inc. said, "The publishers involved in J-PAD will be able to realize the benefits of PMP deals available in an environment that is attractive to advertisers, thereby increasing the value of our inventory whilst delivering against our buyers needs." J-PAD is powered by PubMatic's comprehensive revenue management platform, SEVEN, thus creating a programmatic environment in which publishers and media buyers have the ability to take advantage of multiple trading mechanisms such as PMP and PMP-G with the added support of real-time analytics and viewability tools. "We are honored to be the technology partner for this important initiative in Japan's digital media industry and to facilitate the growth of programmatic advertising in the world's third largest digital advertising market. We firmly believe in maintaining an open and transparent digital media industry and are looking forward to the benefits J-PAD will offer to our publisher and advertiser partners," said Jason Barnes, VP APAC, PubMatic. This announcement comes at a time of significant growth for PubMatic, which recently reported that it is cash flow positive following its third year of profitability on an adjusted EBITDA basis in 2015. For more information on PubMatic or its revenue management platform, SEVEN, visit www.PubMatic.com. 1Performance-based advertising refers to advertising methods that utilize platforms to process vast amounts of data for the automatic or instantaneous optimization of advertising. Typical examples include search engine advertising and certain ad networks, as well as the recently developed DSPs, ad exchanges and supply-side platforms. Performance-based advertising does not include ad-space sales, tie-up ads or affiliate advertising. 2Dentsu: Advertising Expenditures in Japan 2015 3Q1 Research by PubMatic Inc. About Publisher Monetization Research Group (PMRG) The Publisher Monetization Research Group (PMRG), which PubMatic sponsors, was established in April 2015 for Japanese publishers with the goal of providing opportunities to share their knowledge and know-how, utilizing their own assets effectively and establishing their position in the market. The PMRG has been led by its board members consisting of the chairperson, Ryuji Yokoyama who is CEO of Digital Intelligence Inc. and representatives of Japanese premium publishers and PubMatic. About PubMatic PubMatic is the automation solutions company for an open digital media industry. Featuring the leading omni-channel revenue automation platform for publishers and enterprise-grade programmatic tools for media buyers, PubMatic's publisher-first approach enables advertisers to access premium inventory at scale. Processing nearly one trillion ad impressions per month, PubMatic has created a global infrastructure to activate meaningful connections between consumers, content and brands. Since 2006, PubMatic's focus on data and technology innovation has fueled the growth of the programmatic industry as a whole. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, PubMatic operates 11 offices and six data centers worldwide. The trademarks or registered trademarks mentioned in this press release are the property of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005363/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] TransCore Selected to Modernize New York Bridges and Tunnels with All-Electronic Tolling New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has selected TransCore to convert all nine of its bridges and tunnels to All-Electronic Tolling (AET). Under an accelerated roll-out schedule, TransCore will finish converting the first three facilities by January 2017. The remaining conversions will be completed through November 2017. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005088/en/ TransCore will update the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to All-Electronic Tolling. (Photo: Business Wire) Governor Andrew M. Cuomo first announced the New York Crossings Project in October, as a broad initiative to reduce traffic congestion and decrease vehicle emissions for the 800,000 commuters who cross these roads and bridges every day. "By investing in New York's transportation network today and equipping it to meet the challenges of tomorrow, we are cementing our state's position as a national leader in 21st century infrastructure and cutting-edge innovation," Governor Cuomo said. "From speeding up commutes and reducing emissions on key roadways with automatic tolling to bolstering resiliency on our bridges and tunnels and increasing security at key checkpoints, this transformational project will revolutionize transportation in New York and ensure that our state is built to lead for generations to come," Governor Cuomo stated when unveiling the new initiative. The facilities being converted by TransCore include: Henry Hudson Bridge Hugh L. Carey Tunnel Queens Midtown Tunnel Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge RobertF. Kennedy Bridge Verrazano-Narrows Bridge Throgs Neck Bridge Bronx-Whitestone Bridge Infinity8 Digital Lane System on the bridges and tunnels so the existing gated toll plazas can be demolished. Because the MTA ranks as the largest toll agency in the United States, the requirement for this AET system to capture every transaction in a highly accurate and auditable manner was a critical aspect in the technology selection process, along with a proven ability to meet challenging accelerated deployment schedules. The Infinity system integrates automatic vehicle identification, vehicle classification, and video capture and recognition systems specifically designed to automatically collect transactions in high-volume traffic across a wide variety of traffic speeds and patterns with the highest degrees of accuracy in the industry. For commuters, the Infinity system will automatically read E-ZPass tolltags, enabling these vehicles to cross the facilities without stopping. Commuters without an E-ZPass will also now be able to drive through unimpeded, as cameras installed on the gantries will automatically read each vehicle's license plate. Motorists will then receive a toll charge in the mail. For MTA, Infinity's fully-integrated digital video audit system also provides auditors with a real-time, user-friendly tool to facilitate end-to-end revenue traceability and auditability. "We are truly honored that the largest toll agency in the United States entrusts TransCore tolling technology to accurately collect over $1.8 billion in annual toll revenues amidst the world's most challenging traffic conditions," said Whitt Hall, senior vice president of Tolling, TransCore. "Our entire team is excited to help implement MTA's vision for this transformative project in a timeframe that sets a new standard in the industry." About MTA Bridges and Tunnels Created in 1933 by Robert Moses, MTA Bridges and Tunnels serves more than 800,000 vehicles each weekday - over 280 million vehicles each year - and carries more traffic than any other bridge and tunnel authority in the nation. Surplus revenues from the authority's tolls help support MTA transit services. MTA Bridges and Tunnels bridges are the Robert F. Kennedy, Throgs Neck, Verrazano-Narrows, Bronx-Whitestone, Henry Hudson, Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial, and Cross Bay Veterans Memorial; its tunnels are the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel (formerly Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel) and Queens Midtown. All are within New York City, and all accept payment by E-ZPass, an electronic toll collection system that is moving traffic through MTA Bridges and Tunnels toll plazas faster and more efficiently. Eighty-one percent of the vehicles that use MTA Bridges and Tunnels crossings on weekdays now use E-ZPass. MTA Bridges and Tunnels is a cofounder of the E-ZPass Interagency Group, which has implemented seamless toll collection in 14 states, including New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, and West Virginia; tolls are charged electronically to a single E-ZPass account. About TransCore A leader in the transportation industry, TransCore provides innovative, technical solutions and engineering services for applications encompassing next generation Open Road Tolling and Traffic Management Systems. We operate award-winning tolling customer service centers for departments of transportation throughout the U.S. and internationally. A pioneer in Radio Frequency Identification systems used in the transportation industry, we secure access for airports, hospitals, parking garages, border patrols, trucking fleets and the rail industry. TransCore is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Roper Technologies, a diversified technology company in the S&P 500, Fortune 1000 and Russell 1000 indices. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005088/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 30, 2016] The World IOT Expo Opens in Wuxi on October 30 WUXI, China, Oct. 30, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- World Internet of Things Exposition 2016 opened in Wuxi on October 30. It displays a lot of "Black Technology" products, such as parking spaces that can automatically call the vehicle, manhole cover that will automatically alarm when stolen, and sleeping blanket that can diagnose diseases. The World IOT Expo is jointly hosted by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology and Jiangsu Provincial People's Government. It has attracted 489 exhibitors, including many well-known enterprises both at home and abroad, like Microsoft, IBM, Siemens, Alibaba, Huawei and China Mobile. At China Mobile's booth, the reporter saw 3 unmanned vehicle models automatically driving in the "8-shaped" orbit. "This product is a 5G technology application in intelligent transportation andunmanned driving. With a delay time of only 3 milliseconds, it ensures high-speed vehicles always keep a safe driving distance," Wu Gang, project manager of Jiangsu Mobile said. In addition to networking applications and products exhibition, the World IOT Expo will hold the IOT Wuxi Summit. The guests will be in-depth discussion and exchange of hot points of common concern around the internet of things and intelligent manufacturing, environmental protection, intelligent transportation, medical, financial, information security, big data and other issues in the industry at home and abroad. According to the national Ministry of Science and Technology Department inspector Lu Xi's introduction, at present Chinese IOT industry scale has reached 750 billion yuan, in intelligent transportation, car networking, health and other areas, having formed a number of mature Internet of things platforms and business models. The exposition of "Create IOT era ,Share Global Intelligence" as the theme, is the highest and largest national fair in the field. It's supported by China Academy of Sciences, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Global Language of Business (GS1), Auto-ID Labs. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-world-iot-expo-opens-in-wuxi-on-october-30-300353882.html SOURCE World Internet of Things Exposition [October 31, 2016] NTT Communications' Global Data VPN Is No. 1 in Customer Satisfaction for the Sixth Consecutive Time NTT Communications Corporation (NTT (News - Alert) Com), the ICT solutions and international communications business within the NTT (NYSE:NTT) Group, announced today that its Arcstar Universal One global VPN service received a No.1 Customer Satisfaction designation from the UK marketing services firm Ocean82, Ltd. for the sixth consecutive time. The selection, which is based on predicted organic growth and overall customer satisfaction, was published recently in "Voice of the Customer: Global Data VPN, Issue 21," a benchmarking report. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161030005047/en/ Ocean82 Crystal Ball (Graphic: Business Wire) According to Janet Watkin CEO of Ocean82, "NTT Com consistently strives to provide a superior customer experience and their customer satisfaction rating for global data VPN reflect their leading position, ahead of major rivals, in the Ocean82 independently produced competitive league table measuring user experinces." NTT Com also received Gold Awards for outstanding performance in 9 categories, including Network Operation, Secure Data Transfer, Network Availability, Installation Not Disruptive, No Hidden Extras in Bills, Accurate Bills, 24 Hour Transparent Maintenance, End to End Network Management and Bills in Currency of Choice. Ocean82 evaluated customer satisfaction of eight global telecom operators, the others being AT&T, BT, Orange Business, T-Systems, Telefonica (News - Alert), Verizon and Vodafone Global Enterprise. The methodology involved interviewing decision-makers, influencers and end users at more than 1,000 multinational companies. The report considered major categories of customer service and 32 related service attributes. NTT Com will continue to enhance its total ICT solutions, including networks, data centers, security, applications and managed services, all on a seamless, end-to-end, one-stop basis, to help customers achieve their digital transformation. About NTT Communications (News - Alert) Corporation NTT Communications provides consultancy, architecture, security and cloud services to optimize the information and communications technology (ICT) environments of enterprises. These offerings are backed by the company's worldwide infrastructure, including the leading global tier-1 IP network, the Arcstar Universal One VPN network reaching 196 countries/regions and 140 secure data centers worldwide. NTT Communications' solutions leverage the global resources of NTT Group companies including Dimension Data (News - Alert), NTT DOCOMO and NTT DATA. www.ntt.com | [email protected] Com | [email protected] Com | [email protected] Com About Ocean82 Ocean82 is an established marketing services firm specializing in benchmarking the customer service experience for the information & communication technologies industry. It is known for its track record in "Voice of the customer" analysis of competitive positioning, business strategy, branding, post-purchase care, channel management and pre-sales support, among other areas. It has experience in 30 countries and 10 languages, often making Ocean82 the first-choice supplier for organizations requiring international marketing research and analysis covering emerging technologies. www.ocean82.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161030005047/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] NTT Communications Launches High-Capacity Optical Submarine Cable Network Serving Asia-Pacific Region NTT Communications (News - Alert) Corporation (NTT Com), the ICT solutions and international communications business within the NTT (NYSE:NTT) Group, announced today that it has launched the Asia Pacific Gateway (News - Alert) (APG), a high-bandwidth optical submarine cable network connecting regions and countries in the Asia. NTT Com has implemented the new service in partnership with major telecommunication carriers in each country. The APG will increase data transmission capacity in the Asian region, improve connectivity between various regions and countries and improve redundancy by means of diverse routing. With a total length of 10,400 km, the APG network leverages 100Gbps optical transmission capabilities and digital coherent technology to deliver a capacity of more than 54 Tbps, the highest of any network in Asia. The cable routing avoids areas prone to earthquakes and typhoons, and has connectivity points in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. See Attachment 1 for more information. NTT Com has established two diverse landing points, one in the East and the other in the West of Japan for the APG and Pacific Crossing-1 (PC-1) submrine cable which connects between Japan and the U.S. having diverse route such as north and south routes. The company has also implemented diverse landing points in Hong Kong and Singapore for the APG and for the Asia Submarine-Cable Express (ASE), which was launched in August 2012. NTT Com thereby operates totally diverse cable routes between the US West Coast and key economic hubs in Asia regions, offering even greater reliability and redundancy in its global network. See Attachment 2 for more information. About NTT Communications Corporation NTT Communications provides consultancy, architecture, security and cloud services to optimize the information and communications technology (ICT) environments of enterprises. These offerings are backed by the company's worldwide infrastructure, including the leading global tier-1 IP network, the Arcstar Universal One VPN network reaching 196 countries/regions, and over 140 secure data centers worldwide. NTT Communications' solutions leverage the global resources of NTT Group companies including Dimension Data (News - Alert), NTT DOCOMO and NTT DATA. www.ntt.com | [email protected] Com | [email protected] Com | [email protected] Com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161030005066/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Kuang-Chi GCI Fund to Invest $250m in Global Startups SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 31, 2016 /CNW/ -- Kuang-Chi Group has launched its second Global Community of Innovation (GCI) fund, which will invest up to $250 million in companies developing technology in industries including robotics, IoT, telecommunications, and digital health. The fund has a focus on global startups and follows a previous investment of $50 million in similar fields, the company announced today. Through investments of the first GCI fund, Kuang-Chi has taken stakes in companies with a focus on innovative and disruptive technologies, including video intelligence provider Agent Video Intelligence (Agent Vi). Itsik Kattan, CEO of AgentVi, remarked, "After Kuang-Chi became a strategic investor in Agent Vi, our cooperation has made rapid headway. Among other initiatives, we will open an Innovation Center in early 2017 in Tel Aviv, Israel, which will look to identify and integrate Smart City technologies being developed in Israel with our and Kuang-Chi's offering." In addition to Agent Vi, the GCI fund has invested in global innovators including: gesture control leader eyeSight; emotions analytics pioneer Beyond Verbal; biometric authentication provider, Zwipe; and UAV surveillance company SkyX. Kuang-Chi has also established a number of JVs to strengthen its portfolio companies' market positions, including one JV recently announced with Zwipe in Shenzhen. Dr. Ruopeng Liu , chairman of Kuang-Chi, stated, "The first $50 million tranche of the $300 million GCI fund has been invested successfully. We look to build on our momentum by expanding our investment focus and, for the first time, offering our partners the opportunity to participate in our investments." The first Chinese technology company to have created an Israel-focused strategic VC fund, Kuang-Chi has experience leveraging its technological expertise and personnel to identify potential in startups and new technologies. Dr. Liu added, "The GCI portfolio companies will share access to Kuang-Chi's technology, sales and distribution capabilities, and the wide network of partners with whom we work in China and beyond. Our investments come with an opportunity to expand business in the Chinese market and to establish relationships with leaders across multiple industries." Dorian Barak, Kuang-Chi's global investment director, stated, "Chinese companies are becoming important investors in Israel, with market leaders such as Alibaba, Baidu, Kuang-Chi, and Tencent joining Intel, Google, Apple and others as strategic investors and acquirers. At the same time, more and more Israeli start-ups are focusing on bringing their products and capabilities into Chinese market." "I am delighted by the progress Kuang-Chi has made in Israel and look forward to seeing GCI expand its activity with additional investment partners. Kuang-Chi's technological strength, geographic reach and market position offer significant benefits to portfolio companies seeking to operate in Asia," Dorian Barak commented. About Kuang-Chi Group Kuang-Chi is a high-tech company that is dedicated to disruptive innovation. Headquartered in Shenzhen, China, Kuang-Chi comprises a group of public and private companies, research institutes,and principal investment in cutting-edge technology sectors including communications, metamaterials, and space technology, which have applications in diversified business areas including aerospace, intelligent equipment, internet of things, and smart cities. To learn more about Kuang-Chi, please visit http://www.kuang-chi.com/en To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kuang-chi-gci-fund-to-invest-250m-in-global-startups-300353917.html SOURCE KuangChi Science [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Level 3 Reports Third Quarter 2016 Results BROOMFIELD, Colo., Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) today reported results for the third quarter 2016. "We continued to expand margins and generated solid Free Cash Flow; however, we saw softer revenue growth in the quarter," said Jeff Storey, president and CEO of Level 3. "We are focused on delivering the best customer experience and improving our execution in the near term." Total revenue was $2.033 billion for the third quarter 2016, compared to $2.062 billion and $2.037 billion, on a reported and modified basis, for the third quarter 2015, respectively. The third quarter 2015 modified results exclude the results from the company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations that was deconsolidated as of September 30, 2015. In the third quarter 2016, the company generated net income of $143 million, basic earnings per share of $0.40 and diluted earnings per share of $0.39. For the third quarter 2015, net income was $1 million and basic and diluted earnings per share were $0.00. The third quarter 2015 results included a charge of $171 million, or approximately $0.48 earnings per share related to the deconsolidation of the company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations. Excluding this charge, basic earnings per share was $0.48 per share for the third quarter 2015. Financial Results Metric ($ in millions) Third Quarter 2016 Third Quarter 2015(1)(4) Third Quarter 2015 Modified(1)(2)(4) Core Network Services Revenue $1,930 $1,945 $1,920 Wholesale Voice Services Revenue $103 $117 $117 Total Revenue $2,033 $2,062 $2,037 Network Access Costs $675 $706 $702 Network Access Margin 66.8% 65.8% 65.5% Network Related Expenses (NRE)(3) $331 $364 $362 Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (SG&A)(3) $311 $335 $332 Non-cash Compensation Expense $43 $34 $34 Adjusted EBITDA(6) $716 $657 $641 Adjusted EBITDA Margin(6) 35.2% 31.9% 31.5% Cash Flows from Operating Activities $645 $575 $561 Capital Expenditures $364 $328 $324 Unlevered Cash Flow(6) $407 $376 $366 Free Cash Flow(6) $281 $247 $237 Net Income(5) $143 $1 Net Income per Common Share-Basic (5) $0.40 $0.00 Weighted Average Shares Outstanding (in thousands)- Basic 359,561 355,791 (1) The reported third quarter 2015 results have been adjusted to reflect changes made to customer assignments between the wholesale and enterprise channels as of the beginning of 2016. (2) References to "modified" figures represent the adjustments made to exclude the company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations except for Net Income, Net Income per Common Share-Basic and Weighted Average Shares Outstanding (in thousands)- Basic. (3) Excludes non-cash compensation expense. (4) Third quarter 2015 results include $24 million of restructuring and impairment charges, of which $8 million is included in Network Related Expenses and $16 million is included in SG&A. (5) Includes a $10 million benefit in the third quarter 2016 related to the Company's adoption of the accounting standards update for Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting. (6) See schedule of non-GAAP metrics for definitions and reconciliation to GAAP measures. Revenue 3Q16/3Q15 Core Network Services (CNS) Revenue ($ in millions) Third Quarter 2016 Third Quarter 2015(1) Third Quarter 2015 Modified(1)(2) Percent Change(3) Percent Change, Modified(4) Percent Change, Modified and Constant Currency North America $1,572 $1,551 $1,551 1% 1% 1% Wholesale $412 $426 $426 (3%) (3%) (3%) Enterprise $1,160 $1,125 $1,125 3% 3% 3% EMEA $182 $211 $211 (14%) (14%) (8%) Wholesale $61 $70 $70 (13%) (13%) (8%) Enterprise $104 $115 $115 (10%) (10%) (4%) UK Government $17 $26 $26 (35%) (35%) (23%) Latin America $176 $183 $158 (4%) 11% 10% Wholesale $37 $45 $40 (18%) (8%) (7%) Enterprise $139 $138 $118 1% 18% 16% Total CNS Revenue $1,930 $1,945 $1,920 (1%) 1% 1% Wholesale $510 $541 $536 (6%) (5%) (4%) Enterprise $1,420 $1,404 $1,384 1% 3% 3% (1) The reported third quarter 2015 results have been adjusted to reflect changes made to customer assignments between the wholesale and enterprise channels as of the beginning of 2016. (2) References to "modified" figures represent the adjustments made to exclude the company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations. (3) Year-over-year growth rates are calculated using third quarter 2015 results which have been adjusted to reflect changes made to customer assignments and included the company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations. These growth rates are on a reported basis and not adjusted for currency. (4) Modified year-over-year growth rates are calculated using third quarter 2015 results which have been adjusted to reflect changes made to customer assignments as well as to exclude the company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations. These growth rates are on a reported basis and not adjusted for currency. CNS Revenue CNS Revenue was $1.930 billion in the third quarter 2016, decreasing 0.8 percent year-over-year on a reported basis, and increasing 1.1 percent year-over-year on a constant currency and modified basis. Liquidity As of September 30, 2016, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $1.569 billion. 2016 Business Outlook "We are reiterating our outlook of 10 to 12 percent Adjusted EBITDA growth and $1.0 to $1.1 billion of Free Cash Flow for the full year 2016," said Sunit Patel, executive vice president and CFO of Level 3. "Year-to-date our capital expenditures have been higher than we anticipated at the beginning of the year, driven by increased customer demand for our dark fiber and wavelength services. As a result, we now expect capital expenditures to be approximately 16 percent of total revenue for the full year 2016, compared to our previous outlook of approximately 15 percent of total revenue and we have updated our expected depreciation and amortization expense for the increased level of capital expenditures." The company has also updated its full year 2016 outlook measure for non-cash compensation expense. Metrics Old Outlook New Outlook Adjusted EBITDA(1) YoY growth of 10% to 12% No change Free Cash Flow $1.0 to $1.1 billion No change GAAP Interest Expense $555 million No change Cash Interest Expense $510 million No change Capital Expenditures 15% of Total Revenue 16% of Total Revenue Depreciation and Amortization $1.230 billion $1.260 billion Cash Income Tax $40 million No change Non-cash Compensation Expense $170 million $160 million Full Year Income Tax Rate ~30% No change (1) From a starting point of $2.592 billion, which is adjusted to exclude Adjusted EBITDA from the company's Venezuelan subsidiary. Conference Call and Website Information Level 3 will hold a conference call to discuss the company's Third Quarter Results today at 8 a.m. ET. The call will be broadcast live at: http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=1303742&s=1&k=5921B9461AD59A0989FA76257CA4E78F Additional information regarding Third Quarter Results, including the presentation management will review on the conference call, will be available on Level 3's Investor Relations website. If you are unable to join the call via the Web, the call can be accessed live at +1 866-610-1072 (U.S. Domestic) or +1 973-935-2840, conference ID: 10841687. Questions should be sent to [email protected]. For additional information, please call +1 720-888-2518. About Level 3 Communications Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) is a Fortune 500 company that provides local, national and global communications services to enterprise, government and carrier customers. Level 3's comprehensive portfolio of secure, managed solutions includes fiber and infrastructure solutions; IP-based voice and data communications; wide-area Ethernet services; video and content distribution; data center and cloud-based solutions. Level 3 serves customers in more than 500 markets in over 60 countries across a global services platform anchored by owned fiber networks on three continents and connected by extensive undersea facilities. For more information, please visit www.level3.com or get to know us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Level 3 Communications, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Level 3, Level 3 Communications, Level (3) and the Level 3 Logo are either registered service marks or service marks of Level 3 Communications, LLC and/or one of its Affiliates in the United States and elsewhere. Any other service names, product names, company names or logos included herein are the trademarks or service marks of their respective owners. Level 3 services are provided by subsidiaries of Level 3 Communications, Inc. Forward-Looking Statement Some statements made in this press release are forward-looking in nature and are based on management's current expectations or beliefs. These forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside Level 3's control, which could cause actual events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the statements. Important factors that could prevent Level 3 from achieving its stated goals include, but are not limited to, the company's ability to: increase revenue from its services to realize its targets for financial and operating performance; develop and maintain effective business support systems; manage system and network failures or disruptions; avert the breach of its network and computer system security measures; develop new services that meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; manage the future expansion or adaptation of its network to remain competitive; defend intellectual property and proprietary rights; manage risks associated with continued uncertainty in the global economy; manage continued or accelerated decreases in market pricing for communications services; obtain capacity for its network from other providers and interconnect its network with other networks on favorable terms; successfully integrate future acquisitions; effectively manage political, legal, regulatory, foreign currency and other risks it is exposed to due to its substantial international operations; mitigate its exposure to contingent liabilities; and meet all of the terms and conditions of its debt obligations. Additional information concerning these and other important factors can be found within Level 3's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this presentation should be evaluated in light of these important factors. Level 3 is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any such obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Contact Information Media: Investors: D. Nikki Wheeler Mark Stoutenberg +1 720-888-0560 +1 720-888-2518 [email protected] [email protected] Forward Looking Statements Except for the historical and factual information contained herein, the matters set forth in this release, including statements regarding the expected timing and benefits of the proposed transaction, such as efficiencies, cost savings, enhanced revenues, growth potential, market profile and financial strength, and the competitive ability and position of the combined company, and other statements identified by words such as "will," "estimates," "expects," "projects," "plans," "intends" and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, many of which are beyond our control. Actual events and results may differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or projected if one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if underlying assumptions prove incorrect. Factors that could affect actual results include but are not limited to: the ability of the parties to timely and successfully receive the required approvals of regulatory agencies and their respective shareholders; the possibility that the anticipated benefits from the proposed transaction cannot be fully realized or may take longer to realize than expected; the possibility that costs or difficulties related to the integration of Level 3's operations with those of CenturyLink will be greater than expected; the ability of the combined company to retain and hire key personnel; the effects of competition from a wide variety of competitive providers, including lower demand for CenturyLink's legacy offerings; the effects of new, emerging or competing technologies, including those that could make the combined company's products less desirable or obsolete; the effects of ongoing changes in the regulation of the communications industry, including the outcome of regulatory or judicial proceedings relating to intercarrier compensation, interconnection obligations, access charges, universal service, broadband deployment, data protection and net neutrality; adverse changes in the combined company's access to credit markets on favorable terms, whether caused by changes in its financial position, lower debt credit ratings, unstable markets or otherwise; the combined company's ability to effectively adjust to changes in the communications industry, and changes in the composition of its markets and product mix; possible changes in the demand for, or pricing of, the combined company's products and services, including the combined company's ability to effectively respond to increased demand for high-speed broadband service; the combined company's ability to successfully maintain the quality and profitability of its existing product and service offerings and to introduce new offerings on a timely and cost-effective basis; the adverse impact on the combined company's business and network from possible equipment failures, service outages, security breaches or similar events impacting its network; the combined company's ability to maintain favorable relations with key business partners, suppliers, vendors, landlords and financial institutions; the ability of the combined company to utilize net operating losses in amounts projected; changes in the future cash requirements of the combined company; and other risk factors and cautionary statements as detailed from time to time in each of CenturyLink's and Level 3's reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). There can be no assurance that the proposed acquisition or any other transaction described above will in fact be consummated in the manner described or at all. You should be aware that new factors may emerge from time to time and it is not possible for us to identify all such factors nor can we predict the impact of each such factor on the proposed transaction or the combined company. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this document. Unless legally required, CenturyLink and Level 3 undertake no obligation and each expressly disclaim any such obligation, to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional Information CenturyLink and Level 3 plan to file a joint proxy statement/prospectus with the SEC. INVESTORS ARE URGED TO READ THE JOINT PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS WHEN IT BECOMES AVAILABLE BECAUSE IT WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. You will be able to obtain the joint proxy statement/prospectus and the filings that will be incorporated by reference in the joint proxy statement/prospectus, as well as other filings containing information about CenturyLink and Level 3, free of charge, at the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov. Copies of the joint proxy statement/prospectus and the filings with the SEC that will be incorporated by reference in the joint proxy statement/prospectus can also be obtained, free of charge, by directing a request to CenturyLink, 100 CenturyLink Drive, Monroe, Louisiana 71203, Attention: Corporate Secretary, or to Level 3, 1025 Eldorado Boulevard, Broomfield, Colorado 80021, Attention: Investor Relations. Participants in the Solicitation The respective directors and executive officers of CenturyLink and Level 3 and other persons may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies in respect of the proposed transaction. Information regarding CenturyLink's directors and executive officers is available in its proxy statement filed with the SEC by CenturyLink on April 5, 2016, and information regarding Level 3's directors and executive officers is available in its proxy statement filed with the SEC by Level 3 on April 7, 2016. These documents can be obtained free of charge from the sources indicated above. Other information regarding the interests of the participants in the proxy solicitation will be included in the joint proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials to be filed with the SEC when they become available. This communication is not intended to and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, 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. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Level 3 Communications: Non-GAAP Metrics Pursuant to Regulation G, the company is hereby providing definitions of non-GAAP financial metrics and reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. The following describes and reconciles those financial measures as reported under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (GAAP) with those financial measures as adjusted by the items detailed below and presented in the accompanying news release. These calculations are not prepared in accordance with GAAP and should not be viewed as alternatives to GAAP. In keeping with its historical financial reporting practices, the company believes that the supplemental presentation of these calculations provides meaningful non-GAAP financial measures to help investors understand and compare business trends among different reporting periods on a consistent basis. In addition, measures referred to in the accompanying news release as being calculated "on a constant currency basis" or "in constant currency terms" are non-GAAP metrics intended to present the relevant information assuming a constant exchange rate between the two periods being compared. Such metrics are calculated by applying the currency exchange rates used in the preparation of the prior period financial results to the subsequent period results. References to "modified" figures represent the adjustments made to exclude the Company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations, that was deconsolidated as of September 30, 2015. Level 3 Communications, Inc. and Consolidated Subsidiaries Modified and Constant Currency 3Q15 FX 3Q15 FX CNS Revenue ($ in millions) 3Q16 3Q16 Constant Currency 3Q15(2) 3Q15 Venezuela 3Q15 Modified(3) 3Q16/ 3Q15 %Change 3Q16/3Q15 Modified %Change 3Q16 Constant Currency/ 3Q15 Modified %Change(6) North America $ 1,572 $ 1,572 $ 1,551 $ $ 1,551 1% 1% 1% Wholesale $ 412 $ 412 $ 426 $ $ 426 (3)% (3)% (3)% Enterprise $ 1,160 $ 1,160 $ 1,125 $ $ 1,125 3% 3% 3% EMEA $ 182 $ 195 $ 211 $ $ 211 (14)% (14)% (8)% Wholesale $ 61 $ 64 $ 70 $ $ 70 (13)% (13)% (8)% Enterprise $ 104 $ 111 $ 115 $ $ 115 (10)% (10)% (4)% UK Government $ 17 $ 20 $ 26 $ $ 26 (35)% (35)% (23)% Latin America $ 176 $ 174 $ 183 $ 25 $ 158 (4)% 11% 10% Wholesale $ 37 $ 37 $ 45 $ 5 $ 40 (18)% (8)% (7)% Enterprise $ 139 $ 137 $ 138 $ 20 $ 118 1% 18% 16% Total $ 1,930 $ 1,941 $ 1,945 $ 25 $ 1,920 (1)% 1% 1% Wholesale $ 510 $ 513 $ 541 $ 5 $ 536 (6)% (5)% (4)% Enterprise(1) $ 1,420 $ 1,428 $ 1,404 $ 20 $ 1,384 1% 3% 3% Total CNS Revenue $ 1,930 $ 1,941 $ 1,945 $ 25 $ 1,920 (1)% 1% 1% Wholesale Voice Services 103 104 117 117 (12)% (12)% (11)% Total Revenue $ 2,033 $ 2,045 $ 2,062 $ 25 $ 2,037 (1)% % % EMEA Total w/o UK Govt $ 165 $ 175 $ 185 $ $ 185 (11)% (11)% (6)% Total CNS w/o UK Govt $ 1,913 $ 1,921 $ 1,919 $ 25 $ 1,894 % 1% 1% Enterprise w/o UK Govt $ 1,403 $ 1,408 $ 1,378 $ 20 $ 1,358 2% 3% 4% Network Access Costs 706 4 702 Network Related Expenses(4) 364 2 362 Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (5) 335 3 332 Network Access Margin 65.8% 65.5% (1) includes UK Government (2) Adjusted to reflect changes made to customer assignments between wholesale and enterprise channels as of the beginning of 2016. (3) Represents the consolidated results modified to exclude the Company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations that was deconsolidated as of September 30, 2015. (4) Excludes non-cash compensation of $5 million. (5) Excludes non-cash compensation of $29 million. (6) Percentages are calculated using whole numbers. Minor differences may exist due to rounding. Consolidated Revenue is defined as total revenue from the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Core Network Services Revenue includes revenue from colocation and datacenter services, transport and fiber, IP and data services, and voice services (local and enterprise). Network Access Costs includes leased capacity, right-of-way costs, access charges, satellite transponder lease costs and other third party costs directly attributable to providing access to customer locations from the Level 3 network, but excludes Network Related Expenses, and depreciation and amortization. Network Access Costs do not include any employee expenses or impairment expenses; these expenses are allocated to Network Related Expenses or Selling, General and Administrative Expenses. Network Related Expenses includes certain expenses associated with the delivery of services to customers and the operation and maintenance of the Level 3 network, such as facility rent, utilities, maintenance and other costs, each related to the operation of its communications network, as well as salaries, wages and related benefits (including non-cash stock-based compensation expenses) associated with personnel who are responsible for the delivery of services, operation and maintenance of its communications network, and accretion expense on asset retirement obligations, but excludes depreciation and amortization. Network Access Margin ($) is defined as total Revenue less Network Access Costs from the Consolidated Statements of Operations, and excludes Network Related Expenses. Network Access Margin (%) is defined as Network Access Margin ($) divided by total Revenue. Management believes that network access margin is a relevant metric to provide to investors, as it is a metric that management uses to measure the margin available to the company after it pays third party network services costs; in essence, a measure of the efficiency of the company's network. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income (loss) from the Consolidated Statements of Operations before income tax (expense) benefit, total other income (expense), non-cash impairment charges, depreciation and amortization and non-cash stock compensation expense. Adjusted EBITDA Margin is defined as Adjusted EBITDA divided by total revenue. Adjusted EBITDA Metric ($ in millions) 3Q16 Net Income $ 143 Income Tax Expense 74 Total Other Expense 137 Depreciation and Amortization 319 Non-Cash Stock Compensation 43 Adjusted EBITDA $ 716 Total Revenue $ 2,033 Adjusted EBITDA Margin 35.2% Adjusted EBITDA Metric ($ in millions) 3Q15 3Q15 Venezuela 3Q15 Modified(1) Net Income (Loss) $ 1 $ 9 $ (8) Income Tax Expense 16 16 Total Other Expense 310 5 305 Depreciation and Amortization 296 2 294 Non-Cash Stock Compensation 34 34 Adjusted EBITDA $ 657 $ 16 $ 641 Total Revenue $ 2,062 $ 25 $ 2,037 Adjusted EBITDA Margin 31.9% 31.5% 1Represents the consolidated results modified to exclude the Company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations that was deconsolidated as of September 30, 2015. Management believes that Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin are relevant and useful metrics to provide to investors, as they are an important part of the company's internal reporting and are key measures used by Management to evaluate profitability and operating performance of the company and to make resource allocation decisions. Management believes such measures are especially important in a capital-intensive industry such as telecommunications. Management also uses Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin to compare the company's performance to that of its competitors and to eliminate certain non-cash and non-operating items in order to consistently measure from period to period its ability to fund capital expenditures, fund growth, service debt and determine bonuses. Adjusted EBITDA excludes non-cash impairment charges and non-cash stock compensation expense because of the non-cash nature of these items. Adjusted EBITDA also excludes interest income, interest expense and income taxes because these items are associated with the company's capitalization and tax structures. Adjusted EBITDA also excludes depreciation and amortization expense because these non-cash expenses primarily reflect the impact of historical capital investments, as opposed to the cash impacts of capital expenditures made in recent periods, which may be evaluated through cash flow measures. Adjusted EBITDA excludes the gain (or loss) on extinguishment and modification of debt and other, net because these items are not related to the primary operations of the company. There are limitations to using Adjusted EBITDA as a financial measure, including the difficulty associated with comparing companies that use similar performance measures whose calculations may differ from the company's calculations. Additionally, this financial measure does not include certain significant items such as interest income, interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, non-cash impairment charges, non-cash stock compensation expense, the gain (or loss) on extinguishment and modification of debt and net other income (expense). Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin should not be considered a substitute for other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Unlevered Cash Flow is defined as net cash provided by (used in) operating activities less capital expenditures, plus cash interest paid and less interest income all as disclosed in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows or the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Management believes that Unlevered Cash Flow is a relevant metric to provide to investors, as it is an indicator of the operational strength and performance of the company and, measured over time, provides management and investors with a sense of the underlying business' growth pattern and ability to generate cash. Unlevered Cash Flow excludes cash used for acquisitions and debt service and the impact of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents balances. There are material limitations to using Unlevered Cash Flow to measure the company's cash performance as it excludes certain material items such as payments on and repurchases of long-term debt, interest income, cash interest expense and cash used to fund acquisitions. Comparisons of Level 3's Unlevered Cash Flow to that of some of its competitors may be of limited usefulness since Level 3 does not currently pay a significant amount of income taxes due to net operating losses, and therefore, generates higher cash flow than a comparable business that does pay income taxes. Additionally, this financial measure is subject to variability quarter over quarter as a result of the timing of payments related to accounts receivable and accounts payable and capital expenditures. Unlevered Cash Flow should not be used as a substitute for net change in cash and cash equivalents in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Free Cash Flow is defined as net cash provided by (used in) operating activities less capital expenditures as disclosed in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Management believes that Free Cash Flow is a relevant metric to provide to investors, as it is an indicator of the company's ability to generate cash to service its debt. Free Cash Flow excludes cash used for acquisitions, principal repayments and the impact of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents balances. There are material limitations to using Free Cash Flow to measure the company's performance as it excludes certain material items such as principal payments on and repurchases of long-term debt and cash used to fund acquisitions. Comparisons of Level 3's Free Cash Flow to that of some of its competitors may be of limited usefulness since Level 3 does not currently pay a significant amount of income taxes due to net operating losses, and therefore, generates higher cash flow than a comparable business that does pay income taxes. Additionally, this financial measure is subject to variability quarter over quarter as a result of the timing of payments related to interest expense, accounts receivable and accounts payable and capital expenditures. Free Cash Flow should not be used as a substitute for net change in cash and cash equivalents on the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Unlevered Cash Flow and Free Cash Flow ($ in millions) 3Q15 3Q15 Venezuela 3Q15 Modified(1) 3Q16 Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities $ 575 $ 14 $ 561 $ 645 Capital Expenditures (328) (4) (324) (364) Free Cash Flow $ 247 $ 10 $ 237 $ 281 Cash Interest Paid 129 129 127 Interest Income (1) Unlevered Cash Flow $ 376 $ 10 $ 366 $ 407 1Represents the consolidated results modified to exclude the Company's Venezuelan subsidiary's operations that was deconsolidated as of September 30, 2015. Debt is defined as total gross debt, including capital leases from the Footnotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements. Net Debt to Last Twelve Months (LTM) Adjusted EBITDA Ratio is defined as Debt, reduced by cash and cash equivalents and divided by LTM Adjusted EBITDA. Level 3 Communications, Inc. and Consolidated Subsidiaries LTM Adjusted EBITDA ($ in millions) 4Q15 1Q16 2Q16 3Q16 Total: LTM Total Revenue $ 2,053 $ 2,051 $ 2,056 $ 2,033 $ 8,193 Network Access Costs (708) (694) (676) (675) (2,753) Network Related Expenses (344) (338) (339) (337) (1,358) Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (369) (356) (357) (348) (1,430) Add back: Non-Cash Compensation Expenses 49 47 31 43 170 Adjusted EBITDA $ 681 $ 710 $ 715 $ 716 $ 2,822 Level 3 Communications, Inc. and Consolidated Subsidiaries Net Debt to LTM Adjusted EBITDA Ratio as of September 30, 2016 ($ in millions) Debt $ 11,013 Cash and Cash Equivalents (1,569) Net Debt $ 9,444 LTM Adjusted EBITDA $ 2,822 Net Debt to LTM Adjusted EBITDA Ratio 3.3 Outlook In order to provide our outlook with respect to non-GAAP metrics, we are required to indicate a range for GAAP measures that are components of the reconciliation of the non-GAAP metric. The provision of these ranges is in no way meant to indicate that the company is explicitly or implicitly providing an outlook on those GAAP components of the reconciliation. In order to reconcile the non-GAAP financial metric to GAAP, the company has to use ranges for the GAAP components that arithmetically add up to the non-GAAP financial metric. While the company feels reasonably comfortable about the outlook for its non-GAAP financial metrics, it fully expects that the ranges used for the GAAP components will vary from actual results. We will consider our outlook of non-GAAP financial metrics to be accurate if the specific non-GAAP metric is met or exceeded, even if the GAAP components of the reconciliation are different from those provided in an earlier reconciliation. Level 3 Communications, Inc. and Consolidated Subsidiaries Outlook Adjusted EBITDA Outlook Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2016 Range ($ in millions) Low High Net Income 580 600 Income Tax Expense 245 260 Total Other Expense 585 620 Depreciation and Amortization Expense 1,265 1,255 Non-Cash Compensation Expense 170 155 Adjusted EBITDA $ 2,845 $ 2,890 Free Cash Flow Outlook Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2016 Range ($ in millions) Low High Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities $ 2,300 $ 2,440 Capital Expenditures (1,300) (1,340) Free Cash Flow $ 1,000 $ 1,100 LEVEL 3 COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES Consolidated Statements of Income (unaudited) Three Months Ended (dollars in millions, except per share data) September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016(1) September 30, 2015 Revenue $ 2,033 $ 2,056 $ 2,062 Costs and Expenses Network access costs 675 676 706 Network related expenses 337 339 369 Depreciation and amortization 319 310 296 Selling, general and administrative expenses 348 357 364 Total Costs and Expenses 1,679 1,682 1,735 Operating Income 354 374 327 Other Income (Expense): Interest income 1 1 Interest expense (139) (140) (145) Loss on modification and extinguishment of debt (40) Venezuela deconsolidation charge (171) Other, net 1 (5) 6 Total Other Expense (137) (184) (310) Income Before Income Taxes 217 190 17 Income Tax Expense (74) (34) (16) Net Income $ 143 $ 156 $ 1 Basic Earnings per Common Share: Net Income per Share $ 0.40 $ 0.44 $ Weighted-Average Shares Outstanding (in thousands) 359,561 357,924 355,791 Diluted Earnings per Common Share: Net Income per Share $ 0.39 $ 0.43 $ Weighted-Average Shares Outstanding (in thousands) 361,907 361,250 358,714 (1)Results have been adjusted to reflect the Company's adoption of Accounting Standards Update 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting. LEVEL 3 COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES Consolidated Balance Sheets (unaudited) September 30, June 30, September 30, (dollars in millions) 2016 2016(1) 2015 Assets Current Assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,569 $ 1,291 $ 691 Restricted cash and securities 8 8 7 Receivables, less allowances for doubtful accounts 749 839 810 Other 131 140 130 Total Current Assets 2,457 2,278 1,638 Property, Plant and Equipment, net 10,167 10,073 9,812 Restricted Cash and Securities 31 31 44 Goodwill 7,736 7,739 7,753 Other Intangibles, net 967 1,020 1,182 Deferred Tax Assets 3,339 3,395 276 Other Assets 49 50 51 Total Assets $ 24,746 $24,586 $ 20,756 Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity Current Liabilities: Accounts payable $ 728 $ 762 $ 630 Current portion of long-term debt 7 7 16 Accrued payroll and employee benefits 194 160 230 Accrued interest 135 131 137 Current portion of deferred revenue 263 268 273 Other 180 170 182 Total Current Liabilities 1,507 1,498 1,468 Long-Term Debt, less current portion 10,875 10,871 10,870 Deferred Revenue, less current portion 1,010 1,027 942 Other Liabilities 630 637 696 Total Liabilities 14,022 14,033 13,976 Stockholders' Equity 10,724 10,553 6,780 Total Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity $ 24,746 $24,586 $ 20,756 (1)Results have been adjusted to reflect the Company's adoption of Accounting Standards Update 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting. LEVEL 3 COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (unaudited) Three Months Ended September 30, June 30, September 30, (dollars in millions) 2016 2016(1) 2015 Cash Flows from Operating Activities: Net income $ 143 $ 156 $ 1 Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation and amortization 319 310 296 Non-cash compensation expense attributable to stock awards 43 31 34 Loss on modification and extinguishment of debt 40 Accretion of debt discount and amortization of debt issuance costs 5 5 5 Accrued interest on long-term debt, net 4 12 Venezuela deconsolidation charge 171 Deferred income taxes 62 20 15 Gain on sale of property, plant and equipment and other assets (1) Other, net (4) 6 2 Changes in working capital items: Receivables 85 (25) (98) Other current assets (5) 15 Payables (33) 84 21 Deferred revenue (21) (4) 63 Other current liabilities 42 14 38 Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities 645 631 575 Cash Flows from Investing Activities: Capital expenditures (364) (367) (328) Cash related to deconsolidated Venezuela operations (83) Change in restricted cash and securities, net 839 Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment and other assets 1 1 Other (14) Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Investing Activities (364) 473 (424) Cash Flows from Financing Activities: Long-term debt borrowings, net of issuance costs (1) (1) Payments on and repurchases of long-term debt and capital leases (2) (815) (4) Net Cash Used in Financing Activities (2) (816) (5) Effect of Exchange Rates on Cash and Cash Equivalents (1) (1) (4) Net Change in Cash and Cash Equivalents 278 287 142 Cash and Cash Equivalents at Beginning of Period 1,291 1,004 549 Cash and Cash Equivalents at End of Period $ 1,569 $ 1,291 $ 691 Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flow Information: Cash interest paid $ 127 $ 133 $ 129 (1)Results have been adjusted to reflect the Company's adoption of Accounting Standards Update 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140908/144115 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/level-3-reports-third-quarter-2016-results-300353949.html SOURCE Level 3 Communications, Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Bernhard Hampl Appointed to the Board of Directors of Cambrex Corporation EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., Oct. 31, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cambrex Corporation (NYSE:CBM), a leading manufacturer of small molecule innovator and generic Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), today announced that Bernhard Hampl was appointed to the Companys Board of Directors on October 27, 2016, and will serve on the Boards Regulatory Affairs Committee. Dr. Hampls appointment increases the size of the Board to ten members. Chairman of the Board, Shlomo Yanai, commented, Dr. Hampl has over 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, leading companies competing within the generic and branded drug space. He will be a valuable asset to the Cambrex management team and Board as we seek to continue our track record of strong growth and profitability in the years to come." Dr. Hampl is the President of BKH Pharma Services, a pharmaceutical consultancy firm. From 1996 to 2005 Dr. Hampl was President and CEO of Eon Labs, Inc. in NY a company specializing in the development, manufacturing and marketing of generic pharmaceuticals, and after the sale of Eon Labs to Novartiss Sandoz, he was US CEO of Sandoz from 2005 to 2008. Dr. Hampl currently serves as Co-Chairman of the Board of Softbox Systems LTD, a UK based company specializing in cold chain shipping. He is also a member of the Board of SiO2 Medical, as well as a member of the scientific advisory Board of Formycon AG, a biotech company in Munich, Germany and the CEO- Advisory Board of Great Point Partners, an investment firm in Greenwich, CT. Dr. Hampl is also an advisor to Advent International, a global private equity firm. Dr. Hampl attended the School of Pharmacy of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany, and is a registered pharmacist who holds a PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the same university. About Cambrex Cambrex Corporation is an innovative life sciences company that provides products, services and technologies to accelerate the development and commercialization of small molecule therapeutics. The Company offers Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), advanced intermediates and enhanced drug delivery products for branded and generic pharmaceuticals. Development and manufacturing capabilities include enzymatic biotransformations, high potency APIs, high energy chemical synthesis and controlled substances. For more information, please visit www.cambrex.com. Contact: Stephanie LaFiura Investor Relations Associate Tel: 201-804-3037 Email: [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] University Students Can Sign up for the 4Th Edition of the Thought for Food Global Challenge until November 30Th The Thought For Food (TFF) Global Challenge calls on student innovators from universities around the world and from all fields of study to develop game-changing ideas to tackle the challenge of feeding 9+ billion people by 2050. Since 2013, the TFF Challenge has helped 5,000+ students from 100 countries take their best food security solutions and develop them into viable startups through a program of intense mentorship and business development from some of the world's top innovators and investors. In the last six months, TFF winning ideas have attracted more than $1.5 million in additional investments. The TFF Challenge has helped catalyze more than 20 student-founded startups. Successful examples include FoPo, a food powder made from fruits and vegetables (as reported by CNN, TIME, and Mashable) and C-fu FOODS, an insect-based protein product (as reported by Popular Science, Los Angeles Times and Le Monde) and AgroSmart, precision agricultural technologies (as reported by Venture Beat, Empresos & Negocios, and Agfunder News). This annual competition for university students culminates with the TFF Summit, which will be held in May 2017. The Summit is an event that brings together student teams and hundreds of entrepreneurs, innovators and radical thinkers to uproot the status quo and invigorate innovation around food security. Winning teams will be awarded startup capital (cash prize amounts of $25,000 USD) and have their ideas nurtured into workable businesses. "The Thought For Food Challenge disrupts the standard development of food security solutions by incentivizing and rewarding radical innovation by young innovators," said Christine Gould, Founder and CEO of the Thought For Food Foundation. "When we give students the platform to question conventional food security assumptions, they deliver tangible impact with some of the most robust and inspired ideas of our generation." For more information, visit: http://www.tffchallenge.com/challenge About Thought For Food: Thought For Food (TFF) is a movement dedicated to tackling the global challenge of feeding 9+ billion people by 2050 through bold new solutions. This 501(c)3 nonprofit is focused on engaging and empowering next-generation innovators through the exchange of ideas and experiences to develop game-changing food security ideas into reality. Thought For Food is sponsored by Syngenta and other partners including the Borlaug Foundation for International Agriculture, Food 3.0, Startup Pirates, Kirchner Food Fellowship and International Association of Students in Agricultural and Related Sciences. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005495/en/ [October 31, 2016] Carvana Named One of the "Best Entrepreneurial Companies in America" by Entrepreneur Magazine's 2016 Entrepreneur 360 List PHOENIX, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Carvana, a leading online auto retailer and creator of the world's first-ever fully-automated, coin-operated Car Vending Machine, was recently recognized as one of the "Best Entrepreneurial Companies in America" by Entrepreneur magazine's Entrepreneur 360 List, the most comprehensive analysis of private companies in America. Entrepreneur recognized Carvana as a well-rounded company that has mastered a balance of impact, innovation, growth and leadership. "We're extremely honored to be recognized as one of Entrepreneur's best privately-owned companies," says Ernie Garcia, Carvana CEO and co-founder. "We were founded on the principle that consumers deserved a better way to buy a car, and we have continuously worked on all areas of our business to ensure their needs are being met and their expectations are exceeded." "Our annual evaluation offers a 360-degree analysis of the current private-business landscape," explains Lisa Murray, Chief Insights Officer of Entrepreneur Media, Inc. "Top performers are determined by how well-rounded they are in these four key operative areas. Entrepreneurship is a complex endeavorthis listing recognizes those who have mastered the challenges and are thriving this year." Carvana continues to disrupt the 75-year-old, antiquated car dealership model by putting the consumer back at the center of the process and using technology to revolutionize the car-buying experience. It is the only company to allow its customers to search for, buy, finance and sell their car entirely online in 2 minutes or less without ever stepping foot inside a dealership. Central to Carvana's customer-first approach, the company provides a 7-day return policy for every vehicle from its growing inventory of more than 5,000 company-owned cars. Carvana invests heavily in advanced, proprietary technology to give customers every tool they need to complete the entire car-buying or selling transaction from the comfort of their own home, all while saving an average of $1,461 per purchase. Honorees were identified based on the results from a comprehensive study of independently-owned companies, using a proprietary algorithm and other advanced analytics. The algorithm was built on a balanced scorecard designed to measure four metrics reflecting major pillars of entrepreneurshipinnovation, growth, leadership and impact. To learn more about Carvana, visit www.carvana.com. For additional details on the Entrepreneur 360 List and the companies recognized, visit: entrepreneur.com/360companies. About Carvana Founded in 2013 and based in Phoenix, Ariz., Carvana is the first complete online auto retailer offering vehicle purchase in as little as 11 minutes, with an average savings of $1,461 versus Kelley Blue Book. Additionally, Carvana launched the world's first-ever, fully-automated, coin-operated car Vending Machine, in Nashville, Tenn. With Carvana, you can shop for, finance, purchase and trade-in a car entirely online, while also receiving as-soon-as next-day vehicle delivery or pick-up at the nation's first vehicle vending machine. Carvana cars come with an accident-free guarantee, undergo a rigorous 150-point inspection and come with a 100-day/4,189-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty, as well as a 7-Day Return Policy. Patented Carvana technology offers a 360 virtual tour of every car, showing the interior and exterior, highlighting all features and even noting imperfections, so you know exactly what you're buying. Carvana revolutionizes the car buying process through proprietary technology, transparency and exceptional customer service, while eliminating the pressure, hassles and hidden fees that come with buying from a dealership. For further information on Carvana please visit www.carvana.com, or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. 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. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130624/CL36441LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/carvana-named-one-of-the-best-entrepreneurial-companies-in-america-by-entrepreneur-magazines-2016-entrepreneur-360-list-300353725.html SOURCE Carvana [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] NextEra Energy Partners, LP third-quarter 2016 financial results available on partnership's website JUNO BEACH, Fla., Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- NextEra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: NEP) has posted its third-quarter 2016 financial results in a news release available on the partnership's website by accessing the following link: www.NextEraEnergyPartners.com/Earnings. Jim Robo, chairman and chief executive officer of NextEra Energy Partners, John Ketchum, chief financial officer of NextEra Energy Partners, and other members of the senior management team will discuss the third-quarter 2016 financial results during an investor presentation to be webcast live, beginning at 9 a.m. ET today. The listen-only webcast will be available on the website of NextEra Energy Partners by accessing the following link: www.NextEraEnergyPartners.com/Earnings. Also discussed during the investor presentation will be financial results for NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). A replay will be available for 90 days by accessing the same link as listed above. NextEra Energy Partners, LP NextEra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: NEP) is a growth-oriented limited partnership formed by NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE) to acquire, manage and own contracted clean energy projects with stable, long-term cash flows. Headquartered in Juno Beach, Fla., NextEra Energy Partners owns interests in wind and solar projects in North America, as well as natural gas infrastructure assets in Texas. The renewable energy projects are fully contracted, use industry-leading technology and are located in regions that are favorable for generating energy from the wind and sun. The seven natural gas pipelines in the portfolio are all strategically located, serving power producers and municipalities in South Texas, processing plants and producers in the Eagle Ford Shale, and commercial and industrial customers in the Houston area. The NET Mexico Pipeline, the largest pipeline in the portfolio, provides a critical source of natural gas transportation for low-cost, U.S.-sourced shale gas to Mexico. For more information about NextEra Energy Partners, please visit: www.NextEraEnergyPartners.com . Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140701/123841 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nextera-energy-partners-lp-third-quarter-2016-financial-results-available-on-partnerships-website-300353958.html SOURCE NextEra Energy Partners, LP [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) Elects New Board Members California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) today announced the addition of five new members to its board of directors. Senior executives from Actelion Pharmaceuticals, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS, Leerink Partners and Sanofi Genzyme joined the board, adding to the diverse background and expertise of the directing body. The five new members are Seng Cheng, Global Head of Research, Rare Diseases, Genzyme, a Sanofi Company; Bill Fairey, President, Actelion Pharmaceuticals US; Bryan Giraudo, Managing Director, Investment Banking, Leerink Partners LLC; Stephen Richardson (News - Alert), Chief Operating Officer and Regional Market Director, San Francisco, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.; and Melinda Richter, Head, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS. California Life Sciences Association (CLSA), the state's largest and most influential life sciences advocacy and business leadership organization representing California's leading life sciences innovators. "As California Life Sciences Association continues to grow and expand our efforts and involvement statewide, we turn to our trusted board of directors to help guide us in the right direction to further enhance California's innovative life sciences economy," said Sara Radcliffe, President & CEO, California Life Sciences Association (CLSA). "Each of our new members bring a unique set of skills and experiences to the table, and will help us enhance our public policy work and grow our offerings to bolster California's life sciences sector." About Seng Cheng, Ph.D., Sanofi Genzyme Seng Cheng is Global Head of Research of Rare Diseases at Sanofi Genzyme, where he is responsible for directing the translational research and early clinical development activities in rare genetic diseases. Cheng obtained his BSc and Ph.D. degrees in biochemistry from the University of London, and trained as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute for Medical Research in London. Prior to joining Sanofi, he was Group Vice President of Genetic Diseases Science at Genzyme, responsible for developing therapeutic solutions for the group of inherited metabolic diseases known as lysosomal storage disorders. He has co-authored 262 research articles and reviews, and is named co-inventor on 91 issued patents in the area of biotechnology. About Bill Fairey, Actelion Pharmaceuticals US Bill Fairey is President of Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc., a subsidiary of Actelion Pharmaceuticals, leading the company's sales, marketing, medical and regulatory activities in the U.S. Since taking on the role in 2013, Bill has gaied FDA approval and launched three significant products: OPSUMIT and UPTRAVI for PAH, and VALCHLOR for MF-CTCL. The U.S. organization has 400 employees and generated greater than $1 billion in net sales in 2015. He received his B.S. in Biology from the University of Oregon, and his M.B.A. from Saint Mary's College. About Bryan Giraudo, Leerink Partners Bryan Giraudo is a Managing Director at Leerink Partners, based in San Francisco, where he is responsible for the Firm's Western North America biotechnology and medical technology relationships. With nearly 20 years of experience, Bryan has executed more than 100 initial public offerings, follow-on and convertible financing transactions, as well as product and company buy-side, sell-side and corporate collaboration strategic advisory assignments for biotechnology, specialty pharmaceutical and medical technology clients. Bryan received his B.A. from Georgetown University. About Stephen Richardson, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (ARE) Stephen A. Richardson has served as Chief Operating Officer and Regional Market Director, San Francisco, since October 2011. Richardson previously served as the Company's Executive Vice President/Regional Market Director of the San Francisco Bay Area from January 2011 to October 2011, and Senior Vice President/Regional Market Director, San Francisco Bay Area from July 2005 to January 2011, where he was responsible for the management of the Company's San Francisco region asset base and operations. Prior to joining the Company, Richardson served as a Director of CellNet Data Systems from 1993 to 2000. Richardson received his Master of Business Administration degree from Santa Clara University and his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Literature from Claremont McKenna College. About Melinda Richter, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS As Head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS, Melinda fosters the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies external R&D engine and supports the innovation community by creating capital-efficient commercialization models that give early stage companies a big company advantage. By providing infrastructure, services, educational programs and networks in global hotspots, JLABS is the best place to start a biotech company. Prior to joining JLABS, Richter was Founder and CEO of Prescience International, an award-winning firm dedicated to accelerating research to the patient. Richter founded Prescience after she had a medical emergency that left her questioning the efficiency and efficacy of the healthcare system. With the tenacity and resolve of a patient looking for a better solution, she set out to create a better model, which now forms the basis for JLABS' operational infrastructure. Prior to starting Prescience, Richter held posts across a variety of functional areas with Nortel (News - Alert) Networks. Richter holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, and a MBA from INSEAD in France. Headshots are available upon request. For more information about CLSA, please visit: https://califesciences.org About California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) is the state's largest and most influential life sciences advocacy and business leadership organization. With offices in Sacramento, San Diego, South San Francisco, Los Angeles and Washington DC, CLSA works closely with industry, government, academia and others to shape public policy, improve access to innovative technologies and grow California's life sciences economy. CLSA serves biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostics companies, research universities and institutes, investors and service providers throughout the Golden State. CLSA was founded in 2015 when the Bay Area Bioscience Association (BayBio) and the California Healthcare Institute (CHI) merged. Visit CLSA at www.califesciences.org, and follow us on Twitter (News - Alert) @CALifeSciences, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005150/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Honeywell To Connect The Modern Battlefield With JetWave Satellite Communications Hardware PHOENIX, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) has announced that it will offer high-speed, high-bandwidth satellite communications capabilities for military use. Inmarsat's Global Xpress "SATCOM as a Service" in-flight broadband service and Honeywell's JetWave satellite communications hardware work together to provide a consistent, high-speed, high-bandwidth connectivity experience for military users around the world, improving overall situational awareness and safety while allowing troops to communicate more effectively. Honeywell recently achieved type approval from Inmarsat for JetWave aeronautical terminals, which enable access to the Global Xpress network and provide a more connected flying experience while over land or sea. Global Xpress customers now will be able to improve the effectiveness of military missions with a secure and high-speed environment to transmit mission-critical information, communicate with ground forces, host real-time video briefings, share data between manned and unmanned platforms, and more. "Unlike many other products available today, JetWave provides high-speed, reliable connectivity, when and where the warfighter need it, regardless of mission or geographic location. Our next-generation connectivity solution will transform the way troops communicate in battle, providing unprecedented capabilities that allow military personnel to have situational awareness in multiple locations at once," said Carey Smith, president, Defense and Space, Honeywell Aerospace. "We've already experienced high levels of demand for JetWave and lined up orders around the world with militaries that want enhanced communications for their mission." "As the U.S. government seeks to adopt an enterprise-level, integrated arcitecture to fulfill their requirements and enhance flexibility of operations worldwide, government users are taking advantage of our Global Xpress SATCOM as a Service, as well as accessing our wideband Mil-Ka leased capacity as part of their own independent network," said Peter Hadinger, president of Inmarsat's U.S. Government Business Unit. "We are pleased with the government interest and demand, driven by Global Xpress' unique global mobility and reliability, seamless interoperability with military satellite resources, and cost-effectiveness. We are excited to present Honeywell's JetWave system as the first Global Xpress type-approved airborne terminal compatible with the Global Xpress SATCOM as a Service." "We envision a battlefield of the future that's not inhibited by spotty, slow and unreliable connectivity. We want to create a landscape of consistent and interconnected communication between parties regardless of the type of platform or its location. The goal is a connected military anywhere in the world with high-speed, high-bandwidth and secure connectivity," Smith said. Supporting Resources Learn more about Honeywell's JetWave satellite communications hardware Read more about Honeywell Aerospace on the Follow The Aero blog Like Honeywell Aerospace on Facebook Follow @Honeywell_Aero on Twitter Honeywell Aerospace products and services are found on virtually every commercial, defense and space aircraft, and its turbochargers are used by nearly every automaker and truck manufacturer around the world. The Aerospace business unit develops innovative solutions for more fuel-efficient automobiles and airplanes, more direct and on-time flights, safer flying and runway traffic, along with aircraft engines, cockpit and cabin electronics, wireless connectivity services, logistics, and more. The business delivers safer, faster, and more efficient and comfortable transportation-related experiences worldwide. For more information, visit www.honeywell.com or follow us at @Honeywell_Aero and @Honeywell_Turbo. Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry; turbochargers; and performance materials. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywell.com/newsroom. Honeywell and the Honeywell logo are the exclusive properties of Honeywell, are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and may be registered or pending registration in other countries. All other Honeywell product names, technology names, trademarks, service marks, and logos may be registered or pending registration in the U.S. or in other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Copyright 2016 Honeywell. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080425/LAF040LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/honeywell-to-connect-the-modern-battlefield-with-jetwave-satellite-communications-hardware-300353806.html SOURCE Honeywell [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] BenefitMall Introduces Payroll Integration with Employee Navigator Software DALLAS, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- BenefitMall, the leading provider of employee benefits, human resources and payroll products and services, announced a partnership with Employee Navigator that will provide brokers and clients with access to a streamlined data management resource for payroll and benefits administration. "BenefitMall is very excited to offer brokers and clients a payroll and benefits integration feature that will allow them to say goodbye to double data entry, expensive integration and payroll deduction reconciliation," said Kevin Thornton, senior vice president of payroll sales of BenefitMall. "Our goal is to help brokers and clients better manage their workflow, while ensuring that their data is accurate and not duplicated." Not only can brokers continue to protect their book of business and provide consultative support to their clients, but now the integration will guarantee that clients receive both payroll and benefits administration technology. Additionally, BenefitMall's clients will not be charged an additional fee to utilize the Employee Navigator snc feature in PayFocus Pro. BenefitMall will provide a dedicated support team to assist brokers and clients with any syncing questions. "We're excited to announce a simplified, integrated solution for payroll and benefits administration. Our partnership with BenefitMall complements our existing product lines exceptionally well on many levels. Most importantly, we're both focused on delivering a great solution to brokers and employers around the country and BenefitMall is the perfect partner to help make that vision a reality," said George Reese, CEO of Employee Navigator. Employee Navigator is a rapidly growing provider of benefits, HR and compliance software. The company offers benefits administration, human resource information systems, ACA compliance, and safety and training tasks to brokers, carriers and human resource professionals. Employee Navigator currently works with the nation's leading insurance brokers to support over 18,000 companies and over 2 million employees around the country. About BenefitMall Headquartered in Dallas, BenefitMall partners with a network of 20,000 Brokers and CPAs to deliver employee benefits and payroll services to more than 200,000 small and medium-sized businesses. By combining payroll and benefits, BenefitMall empowers Trusted Advisors to develop the best employee programs while maintaining compliance with government regulations and Health Care Reform. BenefitMall, the largest national General Agency merged with the second largest privately held payroll company, CompuPay. BenefitMall also operates HealthCareExchange.com, the leading online community for information regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. More information is available at www.benefitmall.com. About Employee Navigator Employee Navigator is one of the fastest growing SaaS-based benefits and HR platforms in the United States. The platform provides brokers and their clients with a single place to manage everything from new hire onboarding and online enrollments to ACA Reporting and time off tracking. Employee Navigator's highly customizable software is currently being used by some of the nation's leading insurance brokers, TPA's and carriers. For more information, visit www.employeenavigator.com or follow Employee Navigator on Twitter: @EmployeeNav. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141118/159384LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/benefitmall-introduces-payroll-integration-with-employee-navigator-software-300354033.html SOURCE BenefitMall [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Essence [email protected] Family Elder Monitoring Technologies Chosen by Medical Guardian TEL AVIV, Israel and PHILADELPHIA, October 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Essence New Smart Alerting Technology includes Fall Detection and Voice Panic Detector Essence's [email protected] Family Home Monitoring system for seniors is to be the core technology powering medical alert company Medical Guardian's upcoming Family Guardian service. Essence is a pioneer of IoT, cloud-based connected living solutions. Industry leader Medical Guardian has been a long-time Essence partner. The [email protected] Family is part of Essence's [email protected] multi-service aging-in-place product suite that offers a seamless home monitoring experience, allowing independence for seniors and peace of mind for their loved ones. The customizable [email protected] Family allows loved ones to be kept aware of their relatives' well-being by being alerted of specific daily events. Essence is also introducing its line of Smart Alerting products, which provides users with an added layer of care by giving them new ways of receiving assistance when needed. The flagship device in this suite is the VPD, an award-winning Voice Panic Detector that utilizes Intelligent Voice Activation[TM], triggered by preset vocal commands to call for help in an emergency. The EP Active Long-range Intelligent Fall Detector is a wearable pendant that automatically detects falls and includes a panic buton as well as a pedometer that tracks usage. The Smart Alert technologies all work in conjunction with and serve as enhancements to the [email protected] platform. "Essence is delivering the next evolution of product offerings in our industry, providing a completely new depth of insight about seniors' activities," says Geoff Gross, CEO, Medical Guardian. "By allowing adult caregivers the opportunity to monitor both activity and non-activity in a parent's home, it reduces their worries while increasing their meaningful interactions. They no longer have to ask things like 'Did you eat?' Family Guardian will do that." [email protected]'s complete product line includes advanced emergency response, independent customized home monitoring, and personalized intelligent home care solutions, allowing monitoring companies and aging-in-place tech providers to offer a full range of services. "Medical Guardian and Essence have been long-term partners in the process to encourage independent living in the senior community," says Yaniv Amir, President, Essence USA. "The addition of the [email protected] Family and, in the future, the Voice Panic Detector suite, to their product offerings means their clients will be able to live independently longer, demonstrating the true value of telecare technologies to enhance quality of life." Essence will again be participating this week as a major sponsor at the MAMA (Medical Alert Monitoring Association) Annual Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee from November 1-3. The company will be presenting its Smart Alerting products to this "Who's Who" forum of the medical alert industry. About Essence Essence is a global IoT provider of scalable, cloud-based connected-living solutions for security, communication, and healthcare service providers. Over the past 23 years, Essence has built an impressive installed base, with more than 18 million products deployed and used by Tier-1 service providers worldwide. Essence is committed to developing and supporting solutions that both enhance partners' businesses and enable people to live fuller and better lives. Essence has won several distinguished industry awards over the past year, garnering recognition by both the consumer and business markets, including the ESX Innovation Award for [email protected] and [email protected] VPD, European Consumers Choice Award, Telecom Broadband Infovision Award, IoT Business Impact Award, and others. Media Contact Amy Kenigsberg K2 Global Communications [email protected] http://www.k2-gc.com tel: +972-9-794-1681 (+2 GMT) mobile: +972-524-761-341 U.S.: +1-913-440-4072 (+7 ET) About Medical Guardian Medical Guardian's provides an affordable and reliable medical alert service to all those who wish to live an independent life, regardless of their limitations and remain safe in a medical emergency such as seizures, stroke, or heart attack, have limited mobility, are at risk of falling as they age, or are afraid to live alone because of home invasions or fires. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Andrew Dyson appointed CEO of QMA QMA announced today that Andrew Dyson has been appointed chief executive officer of QMA, effective April 2017. Dyson will assume this role from Scott Hayward who, after more than a decade of leadership, will leave QMA to take on a new challenge. QMA is a quantitative equity and multi-asset class investment manager wholly owned by PGIM, the global investment management businesses of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU). This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005604/en/ Dyson will be responsible for overseeing QMA's investment organization, and for its distribution and business management functions. He will report to David Hunt, PGIM's president and chief executive officer. Dyson was most recently executive vice president and head of Global Distribution for Affiliated Managers Group. In this role, he managed AMG's central global distribution platform, which works in partnership with the company's affiliated boutique investment managers on heir distribution efforts. Before joining AMG, Dyson served as head of BlackRock's Global Institutional Client Business and previously held senior roles at Merrill Lynch Investment Managers and Mercer Investment Consulting in the U.K. and the U.S. "PGIM is strongly committed to QMA and the importance of delivering its research-driven, quantitative investment and asset allocation capabilities to our clients," said Hunt. "Andrew is uniquely qualified to lead QMA as we invest in building the multifactor and multi-asset class capabilities within this business. Andrew's analytical background, extensive experience working with premier quantitative asset managers over the course of his career and strong record of leading global client businesses will be critical as we look to grow QMA." Hunt added, "We're very grateful to Scott for his years of outstanding service and dedication, which leaves QMA well-poised to continue to serve our clients in the future." Hayward will remain at QMA through the rest of 2016 working with senior leadership to help with the transition. Founded in 1975, QMA manages portfolios for a worldwide institutional client base, including corporate and public pension plans, endowments and foundations, multi-employer pension plans, and sub-advisory accounts for other financial services companies. As of June 30, 2016, QMA had approximately $112 billion in assets under management. Biography: Andrew Dyson will become the chairman and CEO of QMA on April 1, 2017. He joins from Affiliated Managers Group, Inc., where he was executive vice president responsible for managing the Company's central global distribution platform. Earlier, Dyson served as head of BlackRock's Global Institutional Client Business, following the merger of BlackRock and Barclays Global Investors. In prior roles at BlackRock and Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, Dyson held senior distribution positions, including head of the International Institutional Business, and, before that, head of the Institutional Business for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. Previously, Dyson was head of U.S. Multinational Investment Consulting for William M. Mercer, and also served as head of U.K. Pension Fund Investment Consulting for the firm. He earned a Master's degree in mathematics from Cambridge University. Dyson is a fellow of the Institute of Actuaries. About PGIM With 13 consecutive years of positive third party institutional net flows, PGIM is among the top 10 largest asset managers in the world1 with more than $1 trillion in assets under management (as of September 30, 2016). PGIM's businesses offer a range of investment solutions for retail and institutional investors around the world across a broad range of asset classes, including fundamental equity, quantitative equity, public fixed income, private fixed income, real estate and commercial mortgages. Its businesses have offices in 16 countries across five continents. For more information, please visit https://www.pgim.com. 1 Pensions & Investments Top Money Managers list, May 30, 2016; based on PFI total worldwide assets under management as of December 31, 2015. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005604/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] American Water Signs Agreement to Become U.S. Army PaYS Partner American Water (NYSE: AWK), the nation's largest publicly traded water and wastewater utility company, is signing a partnership agreement today with the U.S. Army's Partnership for Youth Success (PaYS) program. The PaYS program is designed to help soldiers prepare for a career after the Army by connecting them with employers who understand the skill, discipline and work ethic that military service members bring to a business. This program is part of a long-term U.S. Army effort to help soldiers forge professional relationships with businesses and encourage business owners to look to the Army as a plentiful and reliable recruiting source. Since PaYS began in 2000, more than 600 employers have partnered with the program. "We are so pleased to enter this important partnership with the U.S. Army that aligns with our business in so many ways," sid American Water President and CEO Susan Story. "With about ten percent of our employees being military veterans, we have firsthand knowledge of the tremendous value they bring to our organization. Much of the skills and training people receive in the military can be easily applied to jobs in the water and wastewater industry, such as engineering, IT and operations. Additionally, these men and women are accustomed to putting safety first and to 24/7 operations. And as the contracted provider of water and wastewater service to 12 U.S. military bases, we are proud to form an additional partnership that helps build a pathway from military service to a career with our company." PaYS helps match soldiers with participating businesses most in need of their particular skill set. Soldiers can sign up to participate in PaYS and choose the job and company they are most qualified for during the enlistment process. Upon completion of their military training and/or first term of service, soldiers participating in PaYS will be guaranteed a job interview at the PaYS partner company of their choice. This program does not guarantee employment, but it does help soldiers clear the first hurdle to starting a career: getting a foot in the door. This program is available to active duty and Army Reserve enlisted soldiers along with Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets who accept an Army Reserve, National Guard or Active Duty commitment. "The Army PaYS Program is a win-win opportunity. The Army helps Soldiers find employment with companies who value the skill and discipline that comes with an Army career, and companies can draw from an endless pool of qualified talent to fulfill their needs," said Lieutenant Colonel Edward Croot, U.S. Army Mid-Atlantic Recruiting Battalion. Founded in 1886, American Water is the largest publicly traded U.S. water and wastewater utility company. Marking its 130th anniversary this year, the company employs more than 6,700 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to an estimated 15 million people in 47 states and Ontario, Canada. More information can be found at www.amwater.com. Click here to subscribe to Mobile Alerts for American Water. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005693/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Cellacore Launches Product Desk Essentials For Easy ACES PIES Mapping For Automotive Aftermarket Industry MIAMI, Oct. 31, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cellacore, Inc., the automotive industrys leading provider of Product Information Management (PIM) software, today announces the release of Product Desk Essentials, a new ACES PIES mapping software solution for the automotive aftermarket industry. Product Desk Essentials is an online web based solution that allows companies to map and manage product data. The solution exports data in ACES, PIES, and other automotive industry standard formats. Pricing for Product Desk Essentials starts at $299 per month. Companies that sign up at the upcoming SEMA Show will receive 30 days free and also free onboarding training and data import. Tony Minock, CEO and Co-Founder of Cellacore stated, With Product Desk Essentials we empower companies to control their own product data and not have to rely on a service to produce ACES and PIES files. It became clear after the successful launch of our flagship solution Product Desk Enterprise that automotive aftermarket companies also wanted a lower ost solution to simply produce ACES and PIES files. Product Desk Essentials does just that at a low cost. Minock continued, The more companies that embrace standardized data exchange formats such as ACES and PIES, the more unified the automotive aftermarket will become. By exchanging data in the ACES and PIES formats companies reduce costs related to product data management and application validation. Companies will also increase sales by supplying accurate data to wholesales, retailers, and consumers. Cellacore is excited to announce the launch of Product Desk Essentials in conjunction with the upcoming SEMA and AAPEX trade shows in Las Vegas on November 1-4. Cellacore will have a booth at the SEMA Show. The Cellacore booth number is #33338 and is located in the Upper Hall South. For additional information about Product Desk Essentials or to schedule a product demonstration, visit www.cellacore.com. About Cellacore Cellacore is a leading business applications development and consulting services organization to automotive companies. Based on a foundation of advanced technology and industry specific business knowledge, Cellacore has developed key business applications for the automotive manufacturing, distribution, and retail markets. Cellacore is headquartered in Miami, Florida and has offices in Tampa, Florida and Toronto, Canada. For more information visit www.cellacore.com. Media Contact Tony Minock CEO and Co-Founder [email protected] (305) 330-1402 - Phone [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Duane Morris Opens Taiwan Office Duane Morris LLP announced today that it has opened an office in Taipei, Taiwan (Republic of China)-Duane Morris & Selvam Taiwan, a foreign legal affairs law firm-after securing approval from the Ministry of Justice. Through its new presence in Taiwan, attorneys across the Duane Morris global platform will work closely with clients to achieve their business goals, with emphasis on intellectual property for Taiwan's robust high-technology, pharmaceutical and bio-tech industries, as well as in commercial and corporate transactions, antitrust and regulatory compliance, white collar litigation and investigations, and foreign trade and investment. "Our new Taiwan office is a logical next step in the long-term strategy for our international operations and our continued growth in Asia," said Duane Morris Chairman and CEO John J. Soroko. "We already have extensive experience working with Taiwan-based multinational companies, and our global platform will help facilitate the business of Taiwanese companies operating cross-border, with focus on the U.S." Taiwan's powerful economic engine, Soroko noted, encompasses industries as diverse as pharmaceuticals and life-sciences, semiconductors and high-tech manufacturing, alternative energy, shipping and other transportation concerns, consmer goods, and construction. "With our experience in all these areas in the U.S. and around the world, we expect to be of great service to many of these Taiwanese business sectors," he said. Duane Morris has long represented Taiwanese companies, particularly in intellectual property, corporate and litigation matters. For instance, the firm represents Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (News - Alert) Company (TSMC), the world's largest semiconductor foundry company, in various intellectual property matters in the U.S., including patent infringement litigation, inter partes reviews and patent prosecution. Other Taiwan clients have included Acer, Epistar, AU Optronics (News - Alert), VIA Technologies, Innolux, Nanya Plastics and Giant Manufacturing. In March 2015, Richard L. Thurston rejoined Duane Morris in the Intellectual Property Group in the firm's New York office. He had previously served as senior vice president and general counsel of TSMC in Taiwan, after beginning his legal career at Duane Morris. Fluent in Mandarin, Thurston has served as an advisor to the Taiwanese, South Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese governments on intellectual property protection and reform. The Taiwan launch marks the fourth international opening for the firm and its Duane Morris & Selvam joint venture since 2013. In Taiwan, Christopher M. Neumeyer has joined the firm as special counsel in the Intellectual Property Practice Group, along with legal consultant Cheng Hsiang "Eric" Chu. Neumeyer has practiced in Taiwan since 2000, including as counsel at Texas Instruments (News - Alert) and legal director at Lite-On Technology Corp. Chu has advised companies in a variety of industries in Asia and globally with regard to patent licensing, patent infringement actions and IP clearance matters. About Duane Morris Duane Morris LLP provides innovative solutions to today's multifaceted legal and business challenges through the collegial and collaborative culture of its more than 750 attorneys in offices across the United States and internationally. The firm represents a broad array of clients, spanning all major practices and industries. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005702/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] 10,000 Flight Hours Achieved on Sensors Used by Royal Air Force CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- UTC Aerospace Systems, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX), celebrates a major milestone with the British Royal Air Force (RAF) as the service's RAPTOR (Reconnaissance Airborne Pod for Tornado) sensor systems recently attained 10,000 flight hours of imaging capabilities in support of coalition operations. The RAPTOR is centered on the world's first tactical dual-band, day/night airborne reconnaissance system, UTC Aerospace Systems' DB-110. The system was first deployed by the RAF in 2002 and has remained in use, supporting operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya. The systemcaptures high-quality day and night images, and uses industry leading technology that is capable of acquiring precision images up to 100 miles away. The imagery is sent to a UTC Aerospace Systems-supplied ground station for real-time operational use. Former RAF (retired) squadron leader, Dave Postlethwaite, who was instrumental in the initial trials and deployment of the RAPTOR system said, "Each Tornado mission in Iraq that used the previous ISR system was tasked to collect 12 points of interest due to the systems' capacity but on the first mission with the RAPTOR we were able to collect more than 200 because it was far more capable." In recognition of this milestone, UTC Aerospace Systems' Vice President of Airborne Systems, Kevin Raftery, presented a Silver Tornado statue to the Royal Air Force's Marham Wing, which is where the RAPTORs are stationed. RAF Marham Station Commander, Group Captain Rich Davies, accepted the commemoration and noted, "The RAPTOR is still very much at the heart of operations as it continues to support missions in the Middle East and it is an honor to receive this Silver Tornado from UTC Aerospace Systems. This fantastic milestone is a true testament to the hard work and dedication of all those who have supported the RAPTOR sorties over the years." UTC Aerospace Systems' talented and dedicated employees have supported the RAPTOR's global mission for the past 14 years in mission planning, imagery exploitation, intelligence network capabilities, and air crew and ground crew support and training. The system is now used by more than a dozen countries on various aircraft, including the F-16, F-15 and unmanned aerial systems. "The RAPTOR's role is indisputable and unmatched, and the RAF reached this important milestone because they have outstanding aircrews, technology and support teams for the mission," said Kevin Raftery. "UTC Aerospace Systems is proud to be an integral part of the RAF's reconnaissance missions for the first 10,000 flight hours, and we look forward to supporting their continued success." UTC Aerospace Systems designs, manufactures and services integrated systems and components for the aerospace and defense industries. UTC Aerospace Systems supports a global customer base, with significant worldwide manufacturing and customer service facilities. United Technologies Corp., based in Farmington, Connecticut, provides high-technology systems and services to the building and aerospace industries. To learn more about UTC, visit the website at www.utc.com or follow the company on Twitter: @UTC. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161031/434284 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/10000-flight-hours-achieved-on-sensors-used-by-royal-air-force-300354193.html SOURCE UTC Aerospace Systems [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Advanced Network Systems Launches Managed Cybersecurity Service Program CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Advanced Network Systems, Inc., a leading IT solutions provider, announced today that it has launched a Managed Cybersecurity Service Program. The program includes comprehensive security monitoring, systems data correlation and threat analysis, client notification and response support services. It is designed to help organizations of all sizes improve their security position and respond more effectively to cyberattacks. The security program is available immediately to public and private organizations including small and medium-sized businesses. Due to their cost and implementation complexity, the enterprise-quality IT security services offered through this program have typically only been used by large corporations. Advanced Network Systems has now made these same services available to small and medium-sized businesses, under a monthly billing scenario, at a price point they can afford. The company's focus on bringing these critical cyber security services to small and medium-sized businesses is not without good reason. Today, 62% of all cyberattacks are targeted at small businesses.1 This is, in large part, because their networks are typically under-protected and therefore increasingly vulnerable to cybercrime. Curren research also shows that the median number of days a successful breach goes undetected is 146; during which time business data and network access privileges are quietly stolen.2 Sobering new statistics reveal that 50% of all small to medium-sized U.S. businesses have reported experiencing at least one data breach.3 Pair that with new data quantifying the average overall cost associated with dealing with a network breach is $217 per lost or stolen record, and the alarming cost of cybercrime to small businesses becomes a pressing reality.4 The issue of providing a better way to combat cybercrime is not being ignored by the IT industry as a whole, as the global market for Managed Security Services, like those being offered by Advanced Network Systems, is expected to leap from $8 billion in 2014 to a projected $30 billion by 2020.5 Kevin Leibl, president of Advanced Network Systems said, "This service goes straight to the heart of the issues that make today's cyber threats so dangerous; their growing level of volume, complexity and stealth behavior. The program provides a way for businesses to examine the large volume of data generated every day by their IT systems, then correlates and analyzes seemingly unrelated events, allowing us to hone in on suspicious activities often associated with a network breach." Leibl added, "By being able to actively pinpoint a potential threator even a breach in progressand then quickly responding to it, you're then able to limit the negative, and often devastating, impacts they can have." He added, "While no one can give you 100% guaranteed protection against a breach, our program is powerful because it's essentially like adding a whole department of IT Security experts to your staff, at a fraction of what it would cost you to add just one." Lorri Haney, the company's vice president of marketing went on to say, "The statistics tell us that this is not just a large corporation issue; that every organization's computer system is a prime target for an attack." She added, "What's important to remember is that when it comes to cybercrime, it's not the size of your company or computer system, it's the data that's on it. I'm talking about your banking and credit card processing information; your customer, patient and vendor information; it's your intellectual property and your employee payroll records they're after. And while larger corporations can often absorb the financial ramifications and customer fallout after a cyber incident, the average small business closes their doors within six months of one. Our new Managed Security Program is an effective and affordable way for them to level the playing field and better protect themselves against becoming the next victim." About Advanced Network Systems, Inc. Advanced Network Systems specializes in the delivery of next generation IT solutions. The company's information technology services and expertise cover a wide variety of applications including network security, wired and wireless/mobile infrastructure solutions as well as IP-based business communication systems. Founded in 1996, Advanced Network Systems is headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia with regional offices in Richmond and Bluefield, Virginia. The Company supports a diverse base of clients including private businesses and government agencies. Advanced Network Systems is recognized for its ability to deliver tangible return on technology investments. To learn more about the company, visit www.getadvanced.net | LinkedIn | Facebook | Twitter Lorri Haney Advanced Network Systems, Inc. 434.973.4747 [email protected] 1 Verizon Cyber Crime Survey 2 M-TRENDS Special Report, Feb 2016 3 Ponemon Institute 4 Ponemon Institute 5 Allied Market Research Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161031/434396LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/advanced-network-systems-launches-managed-cybersecurity-service-program-300354298.html SOURCE Advanced Network Systems, Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 31, 2016] Report on Logistics Industry in China 2015-2020 LONDON, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- With logistics infrastructure had been established, logistics industry is accelerating industrial structure adjusting, changing economy development and strengthening national economy. In past few years, the total amount of China's social logistics kept an upward trend, but the growth rate declined. In Jan.-Nov. 2015, the total amount of China's external logistics reached RMB202.4 trillion with a growth rate of 5.8%. Meanwhile, the structure of China's logistics industry also changed in recent years. The growth rate of total amount of industrial goods logistics kept decreasing from 13.1% in 2014 to 6.1% in Jan.-Nov. 2015. While the total amount of renewable resources logistics showed an upward trend, increasing from approximately RMB0.32 trillion in 2009 to approximately RMB0.9 trillion in Jan.-Nov. 2015. With China's urbanization rate accelerated the construction industry will become the main force of construction of infrastructure, which will also promote the demand of logistics. Meanwhile, China's e-commerce kept developing fast, the development of retail sales online was very quickly, the rapid growth of online retail sales is expected to further promote the demand for express delivery and logistics handling. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4226778/ About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers http://www.reportbuyer.com For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 208 816 85 48 Website: www.reportbuyer.com To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/report-on-logistics-industry-in-china-2015-2020-300354419.html SOURCE ReportBuyer [October 31, 2016] Rimini Street Increases Investment in Australia and New Zealand, Opens New Melbourne Office Rimini Street, Inc., the leading global provider of independent enterprise software support services for SAP (News - Alert) SE's (NYSE:SAP) Business Suite, BusinessObjects and HANA Database software and Oracle (News - Alert) Corporation's (NYSE:ORCL) Siebel, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, E-Business Suite, Oracle Database, Oracle Middleware, Hyperion, Oracle Retail, Oracle Agile PLM and Oracle ATG Web Commerce software, today announced its continued growth and investment in Australia and New Zealand due to accelerated demand for the Company's premium-level enterprise software support for Oracle and SAP licensees. The Company announced that its total signed clients in the region as of the third quarter ending September 30, 2016 increased by 109% year over year. To meet this growing client demand, the Company also expanded its presence in the region with the opening of a new office in Melbourne, and increased its workforce by 52% year over year as of September 30, 2016. Australia is currently the eighth largest enterprise application software market in the world, with annual revenues estimated at $4.2 billion.1 This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005264/en/ Rimini Street increases investment in Australia and New Zealand, opens new Melbourne office (Photo: Business Wire) Growing Pressures in the Region Further Stimulate Demand CIOs and IT leaders in Australia and New Zealand face increasing pressure from their organizations - on the one hand they are tasked with maximizing the ROI across their IT landscape and maintaining what they have to ensure it runs smoothly. On the other hand, these IT leaders are asked to explore and implement digital transformation initiatives to help their business grow and remain competitive. With industry analysts citing that up to 89% of IT budgets are spent on ongoing operations, this leaves little budget left over to implement the more strategic programs that can make the biggest difference for an organization. "SAP is a critical system for our company and it will continue to serve our business well for many years," said Tanya Whiteing, Acting CIO at George Weston Foods Limited (GWF). "Engaging Rimini Street has enabled GWF to substantially lower the ongoing cost of ownership for our on-premises SAP applications. This will allow us to pass direct savings to the business as well as to fund new innovation." Rimini Street Continues Growth and Investment in Australia and New Zealand In addition to the increase in the number of signed clients and global headcount, Rimini Street also achieved a 78% revenue growth across all its Oracle product lines for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2016, compared to the prior 12-month period, and an increase of 52% year over year for its SAP product support revenue during the same period. The Company opened its Sydney headquarters in 2008, and today supports a total of 88 global organizations with operations in Australia and New Zealand, including 10 of the ASX Top 50 companies. Clients in the region who recently made the switch to Rimini Street support include Betfair Pty Limited, ActewAGL, The New Zealand Refining Company, George Weston Foods Limited, Murrin Murrin Operations Pty Ltd, and Viva Energy Australia Pty Ltd. "This year we've seen a spike in client demand not only from commercial entities but also government organizations across Australia and New Zealand," said Andrew Powell, managing director, Rimini Street APAC and Middle East. "As the market matures and organizations become increasingly canny about their IT spend, we find that many CIOs are simply not willing to pay high vendor maintenance fees anymore. By switching to Rimini Street support, these businesses can save up to 90% of their total cost of maintenance and reinvest their savings in areas of strategic importance instead of continuing to spend needlessly on ongoing operations." To learn more, follow @riministreet on Twitter (News - Alert) and find Rimini Street on Facebook and LinkedIn. About Rimini Street, Inc. Rimini Street is the global leader in providing independent enterprise software support services. The company has redefined enterprise support services since 2005 with an innovative, award-winning program that enables Oracle and SAP licensees to save up to 90 percent on total support costs. Clients can remain on their current software release without any required upgrades for a minimum of 15 years. Over 1,600 global, Fortune 500, midmarket, and public sector organizations from a broad range of industries have selected Rimini Street as their trusted, independent support provider. To learn more, please visit http://www.riministreet.com. Forward-Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements. The words "believe," "may," "will," "plan," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "expect," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and are based on various assumptions. If the risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. Rimini Street assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements or information, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Rimini Street and the Rimini Street logo are trademarks of Rimini Street, Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright 2016. All rights reserved. 1 Gartner (News - Alert) Forecast: Enterprise Software Markets, Worldwide, 2012-2019, 2Q15 Update. Gartner, Inc. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161031005264/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] 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. Bitdefender's Windows antivirus software offers excellent protection along with a slew of features meant to secure your family's systems and identities. Why you can trust Tom's Guide Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test . Bitdefender: Specs Malware protection: Excellent System impact, background: Moderate System impact, scans: Moderate Windows compatibility: 7 through 10 Anti-theft: Yes Backup software: No File encryption: No File shredder: Yes Firewall: Yes Game mode: Yes Hardened/secure browser: Yes Parental controls: Yes Password manager: Yes Performance scanner: Yes Ransomware rollback: Yes System optimizer: Yes Webcam protection: Yes Virtual keyboard: Yes VPN: Yes Wi-Fi scanner: Yes Support options: 24/7 phone, email, chat Bitdefender's antivirus protections are just a hair behind those of industry leaders Kaspersky and Norton among the best antivirus software, but its programs pack in more useful features at lower prices. We recommend the entry-level Bitdefender Antivirus Plus for any Windows 10 user who doesn't need parental controls. It's one of the best Windows 10 antivirus programs, hands-down. There is also the bare-bones Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition (one of our top picks for best free antivirus), although it's being discontinued later in 2022. You'll get more features, outlined below, with Bitdefender Internet Security and Bitdefender Total Security. Finally, there's the flagship Bitdefender Premium Security with its unlimited VPN use and cross-platform password manager. All five packages use the same malware-detection technology. The biggest change from earlier years is that Bitdefender now seems to take longer to fully scan a system. Still, the programs deliver excellent malware protection and are the rare antivirus programs that can be purchased in a bundle with home networking hardware. Read on for the rest of our Bitdefender review. Bitdefender Total Security subscription options: 12 month plan - $0 per month ($0 total cost) (opens in new tab) Bitdefender: Costs and what's covered The lowest rung of Bitdefender's line is Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition, which provides basic protections in a no-frills but effective package. As mentioned above, this is unfortunately going away soon. Today's best Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition deals (opens in new tab) Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition (opens in new tab) View (opens in new tab) The cheapest paid program, Bitdefender Antivirus Plus, offers a lot for its price. It includes Bitdefender's Network Threat scanner, a file shredder, an unlimited (but Windows-only) password manager, the company's Safepay hardened browser and an anti-tracking feature. Yearly subscriptions range from $40 for one PC to $80 for 10 PCs, although steep discounts are frequently available. Today's best Bitdefender Antivirus Plus deals (opens in new tab) Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (opens in new tab) $19.99 (opens in new tab) View (opens in new tab) The next step up, Bitdefender Internet Security, is again only for Windows machines; yearly costs range from $60 for one PC to $90 for 10. It adds a two-way firewall, parental controls and dedicated webcam and microphone protection. The file-encryption feature has been dropped for 2021. Today's best Bitdefender Internet Security deals (opens in new tab) Bitdefender Internet Security (opens in new tab) $32 (opens in new tab) View (opens in new tab) Bitdefender Total Security adds software for Macs and Android devices, plus a new system optimizer to squeeze a little extra performance out of your system. It covers five devices for $90 a year or 10 systems for $100, and it's one of our top picks among the best internet security suites. The Bitdefender Family Pack is Total Security for up to 15 systems, with a list price of $120. The Mac antivirus software is also available as the stand-alone Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac starting at $40 per year. There are two Android antivirus apps, the stripped-down Bitdefender Antivirus Free and the $15-per-year feature-rich Bitdefender Mobile Security . Bitdefender Mobile Security for iOS also costs $15 per year, but Apple won't let it do much. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Except for the free option, all these programs give you 200MB of data daily on Bitdefender's VPN service. Unlimited data costs an additional $7 a month or $40 a year, or you can get Bitdefender's Premium Security antivirus suite. That package costs $150 a year for 10 systems and also comes with priority support and an unlimited, cross-platform password manager that by itself costs $30 per year. Today's best Bitdefender Premium Security deals (opens in new tab) Bitdefender Premium Security (opens in new tab) $59.99 (opens in new tab) View (opens in new tab) (Image credit: Tom's Guide) There are also two ways to get Bitdefender antivirus protection with home networking hardware. Netgear's newer routers, including the Orbi mesh systems and the Nighthawk line, have optional protection called Netgear Armor that protects smart-home devices and also includes an unlimited-device license for Bitdefender Total Security. Some new Netgear routers come with one to three free years of Armor protection. After that, it's $70 a year. You can also add it to routers that have already been purchased. That's quite a bargain considering you're getting the same coverage as the $120 Bitdefender Family Pack. (Netgear has a full list of routers that support Netgear Armor here (opens in new tab).) You can also get Bitdefender Total Security for unlimited devices with the Bitdefender Box network-security appliance, which retails for $200. Like Netgear Armor, the Box protects smart-home devices. Subscription is free for the first year and costs $99 a year after that. Bitdefender's Windows antivirus software works with Windows 7 (with Service Pack 1), Windows 8/8.1 and Windows 10. The Mac software requires macOS 10.10 Yosemite or later. Mobile devices require a minimum of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean or iOS 11.2. Like most antivirus makers, Bitdefender doesn't offer a consumer Linux program. Bitdefender: Antivirus protection Whenever Bitdefender's malware-scanning engine encounters what may be a new piece of malware, it uploads the suspicious item to Bitdefender's online testing lab for analysis. New malware signatures are distributed several times daily to the 500 million systems protected by Bitdefender products. These uploads will include some information about your system and what it was doing when a new threat was detected. If you'd rather Bitdefender not know that, you can opt out of this data collection. (You'll still get the malware-signature updates.) (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Bitdefender blocks potentially unwanted applications (PUAs), fileless malware and bootkits. It also guards the integrity of files and automatically copies files under attack from encrypting ransomware so that you have backup copies. The Profiles feature monitors what you're doing and tailors the protection accordingly. There are preset profiles for work, movie, games and public Wi-Fi. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Bitdefender no longer offers the free downloadable Bitdefender Rescue CD, which booted a severely infected system into Linux for a complete scan and cleaning. Bitdefender paid software still creates the similar Bitdefender Rescue Environment in a hidden hard-drive partition during installation, but the Rescue Partition now uses a sandboxed version of Windows 10 instead of Linux to remove persistent threats. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Bitdefender: Antivirus performance Latest test results as of January 2021 Malware detection rates AV-Test zero-day AV-Test widespread AV-Comparatives SE Labs Bitdefender 100% 100% 99.6% n/a ESET 100% 100% 99.3% n/a Kaspersky 100% 100% 99.7% 100% McAfee 100% 100% 98.5% 100% Microsoft 100% 100% 99.5% 97% Norton 100% 100% 99.5% 100% Sophos 100% 100% 98.3% 86% Trend Micro 100% 100% 100% 92% In November-December 2020 testing by the Germany-based AV-Test lab (opens in new tab), Bitdefender's malware-scanning engine detected 100% of both brand-new "zero-day" malware and known "widespread" malware. But it picked up 12 false positives, a rather high number and by far the most of all seven brands of paid antivirus software we review. Those other brands ESET, Kaspersky, McAfee, Norton, Sophos and Trend Micro also all got 100% scores across the board. Bitdefender has done very well in most of AV-Test's 30 monthly evaluations since January 2017, failing to detect 100% of zero-day malware only three times and failing to detect 100% of widespread malware only once with a 99.9% score. In tests conducted by the AV-Comparatives lab in Austria, Bitdefender's defenses let a few threats through. It caught 99.6% of the "real-world" online threats in cumulative tests from July through October 2020. Trend Micro had a perfect 100% score, and Kaspersky 99.7%. Bitdefender had four false positives over the entire period and Kaspersky had two, but Trend Micro had an astounding 63 false positives. Its malware scanner may be a little too sensitive. We also use results from London-based SE Labs (opens in new tab), in which Kaspersky usually comes out on top, but Bitdefender is no longer tested by that lab. Bitdefender: Security and privacy features Each Bitdefender paid program blocks web-tracking in the Internet Explorer, Firefox and Chrome browsers, but not in Edge. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) There's also a powerful file shredder that's quick and easy to use. Bitdefender's File Vault encryption feature has been discontinued, but files encrypted with older versions of Bitdefender programs can still be retrieved (opens in new tab) if you remember the password. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) The password manager you get with Bitdefender Antivirus Plus, Internet Security and Total Security is Windows-only works with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome and Bitdefender's own Safepay hardened browser, but not Edge or Apple's Safari. For an additional $30 per year ($20 for the first year (opens in new tab)), you can subscribe to Bitdefender's cross-platform, stand-alone password manager, which supports Edge, Firefox and Chrome on Windows and macOS, and also has iOS and Android apps. Safari support is on the way. The Safepay hardened browser protects online banking and shopping sessions by blocking browser extensions and making sure you're using a secure HTTPS session. It has an on-screen keyboard so you can type in passwords and credit-card numbers without having to worry about keyloggers. Bitdefender Internet Security, Total Security and Premium Security still have one of the industry's easiest and best webcam- protection features, which not only blocks access but lets you choose which applications have webcam access. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) They also include a two-way firewall, which can be set to Stealth mode to make sure nobody from outside your home network gets access. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Parental Controls come with Internet Security, Total Security and Premium Security and work across all platforms for seamless control and monitoring. Image 1 of 3 (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) The new OneClick Optimizer makes recommendations for speeding up your computer, such as getting rid of junk files or fixing Registry problems. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Bitdefender: Performance and system impact System performance impact as of January 2021 System hit Post-installation Full scan Quick scan Bitdefender 19% 33% 31% ESET 2% 12% n/a Kaspersky 12% 26% 22% McAfee 9% 96% 37% Norton 5% 51% 22% Sophos 6% 47% n/a Trend Micro 4% 57% 35% Bitdefender Total Security had a moderate impact on system performance. Image 1 of 2 (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) To measure the performance impact, we used our custom benchmark test, which clocks how long a PC takes to match 20,000 names and addresses on an Excel spreadsheet. The Lenovo ThinkPad T470 laptop we used had a 2.5GHz Core i5-7200U processor, 8GB of RAM and 256GB of solid-state storage with 61.2GB of files. Before we installed Bitdefender, the T470 took an average of 10.4 seconds to complete the benchmark, a result we used as a baseline. The completion time increased to 12.4 seconds after Total Security was loaded but before any active scanning took place, indicating a a rather heavy 19% decline in performance. By comparison, Kaspersky Total Security's post-installation performance decline was only 12%, and other brands had even less. During a full scan of the entire computer, it took our benchmark test 13.8 seconds to finish an 11% percent decline in performance compared to the post-installation score, and a 33% decline from the pre-installation baseline. The benchmark completion time during a quick scan was 13.6 seconds, indicating a 10% performance drop from the post-installation score and a 31% drop from the baseline. Kaspersky Total Security and ESET Smart Security Premium both had lighter impacts overall. But the other brands we tested had heavier tolls, with McAfee nearly doubling the system load during full scans. The Bitdefender scanning engine took 35 minutes and 41 seconds to complete the first full scan, looking at a comprehensive 1,208,083 files. That's more than twice as long as the 2020 edition's time of 15:01 to do roughly the same task. But the second time through the system, Bitdefender's engine learned what to ignore and examined 826,635 files in 8:38. By contrast, Kaspersky Total Security 2021 took 17:34 to scan through 400,571 files on the first pass one-third as many as Bitdefender Total Security. Subsequent Kaspersky passes were lightning-fast at 1:26, faster than Bitdefender Total Security's Quick Scan. Speaking of Bitdefender Total Security's Quick Scan, it took 3 minutes and 58 seconds to run through 9,121 key files that might be infected. That time dropped to 3:35 on subsequent scans. The older version took 1:58 to look at 9,117 files. While Kaspersky Total Security ran through one-third as many files, it took 1:26 to check for malware that dropped to 1:12 on the second pass. Bitdefender: Interface Bitdefender's desktop interface has been slightly updated and tightened up. The Dashboard shows the program's major categories on the left, including Protection, Privacy, Utilities, Notifications and Settings. On the right, you can start a scan and also fire up the VPN or open the Safepay hardened browser. You can add another "action" of your choosing or replace an existing one. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Bitdefender's Taskbar icon lets you open the main program or update its malware definitions, but it can't start a scan. You can check your subscription, get tech support and use the Parental Advisor feature on your Bitdefender Central online account, which has a two-factor-authentication option. Bitdefender now offers Digital Identity Protection (opens in new tab), which checks your online personal data exposure and alerts you to threats, data breaches and identity theft. It costs $60 a year for up to three phones and five computers. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Bitdefender: Installation and support Loading Bitdefender on a fresh system starts with creating an account at Bitdefender Central, then downloading the nearly-500MB installer file. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) As the program installs itself, it runs a quick device assessment and lets you run a Quick Scan. It took us 13 minutes to get and install Bitdefender Total Security 2021, roughly twice as long as the previous version took. Image 1 of 3 (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) (Image credit: Tom's Guide ) Bitdefender's paid programs include full 24/7 tech support, and you can call, email or use the company's chat window. With Bitdefender's Premium Security suite, you get priority support. (We've heard several complaints about Bitdefender tech support over the years.) The Bitdefender website has a slew of FAQs, self-service material and instructional videos. Bitdefender review: Bottom line Bitdefender's Windows antivirus lineup returns to the top tier of security programs with excellent defenses that comes close to air-tight protection. Bitdefender's scanning engine let a few threats through and took up a moderate amount of system resources, but it remains one of the best antivirus software options available and the near-equal of Kaspersky's and Norton's products. For consumers who need more than just antivirus software, Norton 360 with LifeLock also delivers identity-theft protection and unlimited VPN use, but your wallet may feel the hit. Kaspersky Total Security remains our top choice for pure antivirus software but that's only if you need everything it offers. If you're looking for a bargain, Bitdefender Antivirus Plus is a good balance between cost and features, starting at $40 for a single PC. By the same token, Bitdefender Total Security is a good buy considering all it includes, and you can get it for even less with Bitdefender's Box security appliance or Netgear Armor router protection. Updated to add cross-platform password manager and end-of-life for Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition. This review was originally published in October 2020. Its always great when were able to do something we love and help other people out at the same time, and Imperium In Imperio is an initiative from record label TEEF that does just that, allowing a range of local talent to come together to create not only a brilliant and unique collaboration, but one with charitable goals. Having already released its second compilation record, the Imperium In Imperio project is coming to the live stage of Melbourne Music Week this month with the aid of Spirit Level and Collarts as part of the Self Made program presented by JBL. A great lineup of artists from the compilation like Braille Face, Anatole, Saatsuma and a stack more will be teaming up with visual artist Jonathan Key to raise funds for OXFAMs Syrian Refugee Appeal with the entirety of the profits being donated. In anticipation of a night of music thatll satisfy the soul as much as the eardrums, we spoke to TEEF owner Tommy Faith about the MMW and Imperium In Imperio, and the challenges that come with running a charity event in the local music scene. Imperium In Imperio will be running as part of Melbourne Music Week from 7:30pm 12:30pm Friday November 11 at 1000 Bend, with a full lineup and more info here. What was it that prompted you to start the Imperium In Imperio project? It was a combination of two things. Firstly, running your own record label is a constant series of hard decisions. You can only work with so many artists and have to pick and choose who you work with (and hope they want to work with you), so there are a lot of local acts I would love to work with but just dont have the bandwidth to do so under the TEEF umbrella. So, Imperium was a good way for me to get to at least release something from these artists. Secondly, its an incredible opportunity to do something socially valuable by raising some money for a great cause. When Imperium was first conceived, it wasnt going to be a charity album but then partway through the planning process the Nepal earthquake struck, and giving away the proceeds felt like the right thing to do. Does the charitable aspect of the project make it easier to get artists and others on board and involved with the idea? It certainly felt like a lot of artists were excited about offering their songs up to a project that wasnt driven by profit. Its not like the music industry is rife with profit at a grassroots level but its easy to relate to the positive feeling of doing something that feels like a morally positive thing to do. Maybe its just endorphins, I dont know. How receptive/engaged are Melbourne and Australia as a whole when it comes to charitable initiatives? Ive seen a lot of people who wouldnt normally pay for music offer up their hard earned coined to support Imperium so Id suggest theres a fairly engaged bunch of people, at least within the music sphere that were a part of. Sometimes its tricky to get people to conceptualise the suffering of people so far away and so different from themselves but theres still a rich vein of generosity all around us. It can be tough enough for a lot of artists and music industry people to support themselves let alone incorporate charity into the equation. What are some tips for anyone whod like to do something with a charity? Im in a very privileged position wherein TEEF isnt my income. I have a 9-5 job which supports me and all the money that comes into TEEF stays in TEEF to be used for future album releases or projects like Imperium In Imperio. Many people who are making their crust in music will be all too aware that margins are narrow so its tough for a lot of people to incorporate a charitable element when things are pretty tight. I guess find a way of raising money by giving people what they want. Im relying heavily on the generosity of artists who offer up their songs so if you cant afford to donate money, find a way to put in the hours and help facilitate donation from other people who might have a greater disposable income. People are often suspicious of purported charity efforts nowadays, either in regards to the organisers, or the charities that benefit. Are people right to be concerned, and are there any warning bells that dissuade you from certain charities? Even though I have my own religious leanings, I get a little uncomfortable when there is a religious subtext to any charity that isnt made explicitly clear. I dont mind if its overt but I appreciate it when its out in the open. Im pretty wary of any organisation thats sole mandate is to raise awareness. Sometimes that feels a little bit like remunerating an artist with exposure, something thats great at a grassroots level but eventually someone has to pay the bills. Do you think its a challenge for organisations to run charitable campaigns these days without being accused of simply trying to self-promote or foster goodwill? Its a fine line to tread. Obviously theres some positive branding that comes around a project like this but I hope its not perceived as my main intention. Ive tried to focus on both the music and the cause rather than the medium so hopefully that comes through. Is it fair to say that any charitable initiative associated with music will have some element of mutual benefit for those involved, and is there anything wrong with that? I dont think theres anything wrong with a mutually beneficial project. Its important (at least to me) that the motivation behind it is at least a little bit altruistic though the starting point shouldnt be how can I add value to my own brand. If thats your launchpad then there might be a problem but who am I to criticise anyone whose project is bettering the lives of someone else? Why did you decide to work with OXFAM? I had heard from a mutual friend a few years earlier that in terms of effectiveness, OXFAM were very highly thought of. I liked the idea that a dollar would go further with OXFAM though I cant give any evidence of that, it was just an anecdotal thing that stuck with me. I hope its true! How has the partnership with Melbourne Music Week come about, and what does it offer you that you wouldnt have been able to achieve otherwise? Tom Hutchins, who I recently dragged into the TEEF family, had already wanted to throw a launch party for the album with the thought that we could donate the ticket profits and potentially get more donations via the album through the extra promo from the show. He was right about the first part at least. It evolved from there and we pitched our idea to the team at MMW, and they obviously liked it because they gave us the green light. Having recently moved back to Sydney yourself after a time in Melbourne, what are your thoughts on Melbourne being labelled as a music city? I think its a city with a great music culture and its a culture fostered thanks to strong decisions on a governmental level. Just this week the labor government in Victoria announced grant funding to soundproof a bunch of music venues so that they didnt get shutdown via noise complaints. Thats phenomenal. Sydney definitely has its own scene and culture, so Id argue Melbourne isnt the music city, but the structures are much better established in Melbourne. Who are some other people in the local music industry running particularly good charity initiatives? Support Act seems to be a worthy cause and I think OXFAM have a fairly good presence in music through the OXFAM parties that they organise. Admittedly though, Im no expert in this field. How have you found the reception to the Imperio releases and shows so far? And the plans going forward? Its been phenomenal. Weve raised nearly twice as much as last years version of Imperium and well be looking to release volume three next year, so were already looking at which artists might be a good fit! If Brace, the title track from their fifth studio album, gives any indication as to the direction of their sound, Perth outfit Birds of Tokyo are about to launch what they call their heaviest record yet. An album packed full of intentionally solid, killer tracks fuelled by images of a dark dystopia. With the album set for release this Friday, drummer Adam Weston took the time to delve into this new exploration for the band, and the message behind this particular record. If March Fires was a metaphorical tearing down and rebuilding of sound, Brace is in a territory all its own, something that Adam says, just needed to happen and taking risks creatively and changing their sound was met by the band with open arms. At some point, as artists, weve got to want to look to the left and throw a curve ball somewhere along the line. The band had previously been held up in LA, playing, touring and living together, something that contributed to this new direction; thats really where we started to go down this different path, not just as a band, but as people, and as friends. Something had to give, and when it did, Brace was born. The particular driving force between this deliberate change of trajectory? Perhaps a collaboration between Birds of Tokyo and producer David Bottrill, known for his work with heavyweights like Silverchair, The Smashing Pumpkins and Tool, might have something to do with it. This collaboration was, as Adam puts it, a perfect match. We knew what path we wanted to take, we already had the sound, he just kind of had to come in and clean up our mess We got him out to work on the demos and he took what we had and worked on amplifying that sound. Adam took a moment to reflect on the myriad of differences with this particular record in terms of sound and output. The sound design on previous records, with tracks like Lanterns and This Fire, was more atmospheric and very post rock, with a lot of wide and warm sounds. This time, we really thought no, were going to do the opposite of that. The theme running through the record is amplified dystopia, and the band drew inspiration from a variety of unconventional sources. When people started to get the idea we were toying around with some heavier sounds, they automatically assumed wed been listening to Nine Inch Nails or Tool or bands like that, but, it was really nothing to do with that at all. For us, it was all about referencing those classic sounds of the keys and specific visuals in a lot of late 70s early 80s sci-fi. I mean, its not anything new for artists to reference these sources, but it was definitely something new for us. It really helped shaped the world we were trying to find for these half-written songs, so once we had a path to go down with that sort of visual imagery, it helped us hone in on what kind of synth sounds we wanted to use. After that, it was a kind of no brainer that we were going to make the songs as epic and heavy as possible. In hindsight, the compilation album Playlist was a chance for the band to take a step back and really comprehend the gravity of their achievements, but also a way to pay homage to Birds as we once knew them. Playlist was a bit of a reminder for us that we have produced a fair amount of material, but by then, we also realised it was the right time to wipe the slate clean. Brace is really a chance to propel the band into the future; were trying to make Birds feel, sound and look as 2017 as possible. Listening to the record, its clear that Brace is an album thats meant to be played and experienced live, with Birds of Tokyos home town crowd getting the first taste when they kick off their tour in Perth on November 17. On this particular aspect of the live show, Adam explains, This record is really accompanying what we want to do as a band with shows, whereas before, with previous records and tours, it was all about the shows trying to support whatever we were putting out at the time. We really put a lot of thought into the visual aspects and what kind of vibe we wanted to put across when performing. Thinking about it now, thats probably how the record ended up becoming heavier and heavier as the process went on. The excitement of the live Birds of Tokyo experience is infectious and, as Adam puts it, the band are well-and-truly looking forward to belting these ones out. Theyll be doing that belting out very soon, with their Brace tour kicking off November 17, dates below. Brace is out this Friday, and can be preordered here. Birds Of Tokyo Brace Tour Special guests Strangers & Introvert Thursday Nov 17 Metro City Perth (Strangers & Pat Chow) Friday Nov 18 Thebarton Theatre Adelaide Friday Nov 25 The Tivoli Brisbane Saturday Nov 26 The Croxton Melbourne SOLD OUT Sunday Nov 27 The Croxton Melbourne Friday Dec 16 Enmore Theatre Sydney Saturday Dec 17 Waves Wollongong Tickets on sale now. T20 World Cup: 'He Was Superb in Warm Up Match, Lot of You Weren't There'-Rahul Defends Rahul T20 World Cup: 'Thats One Place Where You Feel Secure, Thats Taken Away'-Coach Rahul Dravid Says Virat Kohli 'Absolutely Fine' After Privacy Breach T20 World Cup: 'Horrible Weather' In Store for IND vs BAN, 70 Percent Chance of Rain Hurt Prithvi Shaw Posts Emotional Insta Story After Snub from Team India; 3 Other Players Follow Suit Violent Soho are currently in the midst of one of the biggest tours of their career, taking on huge venues around the country with good mates The Bronx and fellow Aussie battlers Luca Brasi and Tired Lion. They kicked things off on Friday with a hometown performance at Brisbanes famous Riverstage. Judging by all of the reviews on social media, the gig was an absolute success, despite the fact that the band were almost late to the venue. Hey if the 180 is any later were going to miss soundcheck. check in with the driver and see what time hell be at Aminya st? the band tweeted on Friday. Yes, Soho decided to ditch the limos and took the 180 bus to the venue. TransLink did get back to the band, but by then they were already on their way to Riverstage. Its cool, the band tweeted. Were on the 180 and should make it [in] time. Thanks for getting back to us though. You can check out the whole ordeal in the video below and make sure you dont miss Violent Soho when they hit up Melbourne, Perth, and Adelaide this week tour dates and details below. Brisbane we had the best time last night. Thanks heaps to everyone who came out for the party and for all your support. Sydney we're on our way to party with you tonight. See you soon. A video posted by Violent Soho (@violentsoho4122) on Oct 28, 2016 at 3:45pm PDT VIOLENT SOHO NATIONAL TOUR DATES Friday, 28th October 2016 Riverstage, Brisbane (Lic/AA) Saturday, 29th October 2016 Hordern Pavilion, Sydney (Lic/AA) Monday, 31st October 2016 Festival Hall, Melbourne (Lic/AA) Friday, 4th November 2016 AEC Theatre, Adelaide (Lic/AA) Saturday, 5th November 2016 Red Hill Auditorium, Perth (Lic/AA) If you havent noticed, were pretty big fans of Melbourne here at Tone Deaf. Its not that we dont love the rest of Australia, its just that we have a soft spot for our hometown and even the rest of the world thinks its what a music city ought to be. Back in July, we reported on an audit of the worlds music cities conducted by the IFPI and Music Canada, which heaped tonnes of praise on Melbourne for the way it promotes its local live music scene, citing several specific government policies. But if you needed more proof, the Andrews Government has just doled out some $500,000 to various local artists, venues, events, and record labels as part of Creative Victorias latest Music Works Major Funding Round. Musicians, bands, venues, festivals and events have received support for projects ranging from recording, to touring, promotional campaigns, music programming, international tours and showcases and the production of music videos, a statement reads. The next major funding round will open in January 2017 and close at 5pm, 15 February 2017 for activities commencing after 1 June 2017. Among the notable winners is buzz-magnet Alex Lahey, who scored $20,000 to fund the recording of her debut album. Dreamy electronic chanteuse Banoffee scored $18,784 to fund the recording, writing, and marketing of her own debut album, whilst Cash Savage and The Last Drinks nabbed just over $12,000 to undertake their second tour of Europe. Meanwhile, Milk Records picked up $8,391 for the mastering, production, and promotion of Split Singles Club, a Third Man Records-like mail-order subscription series of 6 x split 7 singles from 12 Victorian artists. Its just another commendable move from a government thats shown time and time again that it not only understands the importance of a vibrant local music scene, but takes pride in it. Your move, New South Wales. Tex-Mex eatery quietly closed Saturday night. Irving, Texas-based Mi Cocina ("my kitchen" in Spanish) has closed its Atlanta area location on Peachtree Street in Midtown. The Tex-Mex restaurant opened in late 2012 as part of Selig Properties' 12th & midtown development. Mi Cocina posted the following message to their official Atlanta facebook page earlier today: " It is with a heavy heart that we close our restaurant here in Atlanta. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time here and hope you will visit us in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. For questions, please email us at information@mcrowd.com ." The two-level, nearly 9,000 square foot restaurant never seemed to gain a significant following. Mi Cocina was to be joined in the project by sibling concept Taco Diner, but its parent company M Crowd Restaurant Group saw the writing on the wall from the early results of Mi Cocina, and wisely pulled the plug before it ever opened . Dallas, Texas-based Restaurant Works opened their Italian concept, Princi Italia, in the would-be Taco Diner space last year. Mi Cocina's closure, while sad, is unfortunately just the latest in a string of restaurant and retail failures in midtown, many within Selig Properties' newer and more prominent buildings. (M Crowd closed a Mi Cocina location in Chevy Chase, Maryland in late 2014, after about a year and a half in business. By that standard, the Atlanta location did well lasting basically four years.) Max's Wine Dive closed in Selig's 77 12th property last September following a fifteen month run. Fig Jam Kitchen & Bar, previously in Brookwood, was to join Max's in the development, but "terminated" their lease before opening. Cucina Asellina, the Italian concept from New York's The One Group, also closed in the Selig project at 1075 Peachtree. The space has since been consumed by sibling concept STK, which uses the space for larger parties and special events. New York-based 5 Napkin Burger shuttered their restaurant at 10th & Piedmont Streets in 2012, about a year after opening. Polish restaurant operator AmRest shuttered their La Tagliatella restaurant at 8th & Peachtree Streets in 2014 , just over a year after opening. Italy-based Piola, a pizzeria, also closed in 1010 Midtown, after about a four year run. Fado Irish Pub and Ribalta have since replaced La Tagliatella and Piola respectively, and seem to be performing better than their predecessors. Retail wise, Selig's Midtown properties have seen some serious closures as well. Republic of Couture (ROC) closed its 6,500 square foot boutique at 12th & Midtown in late 2014 after opening the previous spring. CB2, the "modern" and "affordable" sibling concept from Crate & Barrel, adjacent to the Mi Cocina space, closed late last year after nearly five years in business. At the time, the retailer blamed a "rent increase" for the closure of their approximately 14,000 square foot store. On a much smaller scale than the two aforementioned retailers, Raw Denim, a boutique that relocated from Buckhead to midtown in 2013, closed at 77 12th in 2014 . *Selig and joint venture partner Daniel Corp. no longer own 1010 Midtown, 1065 / 1075 Peachtree or 77 12th. Why do you think so many restaurants and retailers struggle to find success in midtown? What would you like to see open in the former Mi Cocina space? Do you think Burgerim will do well in midtown? Please share your thoughts below. Craig Glazer: Bomb Hits Clinton Campaign! FBI Reopens Email Case! It was all but over for Donald Trump a week ago. His path to the White House seemed nearly impossible. Trump trailed Hillary Clinton in most polls by 4-6 percentage points and more important he was too far behind in electoral college numbers. Then Donald got two big gifts just days apart. Obama care had to admit that rates would go up for 'everyone' by 25% to 100% this coming year. Wow. That effects millions of American voters. Big bucks. Then the 'atomic bomb' FBI director James Comey announced a new 'email' investigation involving Clinton and her close ally and best friend Huma Abedin and her troubled husband Anthony Weiner. Again yet another sex scandal with Weiner and emails by the thousands on his computer and lord knows what else, perhaps from Clinton to his wife. Details are not yet known and likely won't be until AFTER the election.It's a mess. This election to say the least has been an embarrassment to our country. Both candidates issues have become so upsetting that people are forced to choose who they think is the least 'probelm,' of the two to be president of the United States. One candidate, Hillary Clinton, has clearly used her office, foundation for charities, and even email coverups to make the American people not trust her. She is an extremely experienced leader with great knowledge of most issues needed to be a strong leader. However the Clintons have used their power to go into many grey areas and make millions of dollars for themselves with disregard to rules and laws. They feel they are above the law, that's a big problem.Donald Trump, the outsider, has many great ideas. He is a charismatic character and intriguing choice to have a businessman as president. However his past interviews and feelings towards women have been a huge negative as well as his inability to handle his temper. Lesser issues include some clear personal tax problems, clearly he has used the system to pay little or no taxes, which makes him look bad. To be fair he has far less baggage than the Clintons. Their scandal sheet is too long to print. Yet the democrats are the power group today, there are just more of them. The Republicans have long been seen as a bit racist by minorities and our country has more and more Latino, African-American and other minority voters today than ever before. Most are not Republican. Trump has been painted as to say the least not a friend of the minority groups.As I have written before, I don't think either of these two candidates are as bad or worse than other power brokers who came before them to win the White House like John Kennedy and the Bush family. That's America. With social media, the live tv media and everyone online jumping in on everything and everyone its hard to be a 'clean' candidate today. Boy this makes President Obama look like an angel in comparison.Trump now has a chance to win....'again'....can he? Will he? The polls are nearly even, with this new FBI report its likely Trump for the first time ever will lead in the polls by midweek or sooner. Yet he could win the popular vote and lose the White House due to the electoral college numbers not favoring him. In fact his margin could be better than when Al Gore lost to Bush, and Trump could still lose. Gore had a small margin of votes more than Bush did nationally, but still lost due to electoral college numbers.Its a thriller. Nobody knows the answer. We will find out next week! Hang on.############## is a Kansas City company focused on creating social change. Here's their latest effort . . .Description:"MADI Donations (501c3 subsidiary of MADI Apparel) hosted Runway to Impact Oct 1st of 2016 - kicking off Domestic Violence Awareness Month with a goal of raising $50,000 to END the urgent need for underwear donations in Kansas City. MADI Apparel walked their fall/winter collection on the runway (featured here). Event featured DJ Mike Scott and bands The Buhs, Kansas City Hustle and bre + emily"More in a bit . . . COURTHOUSE INSIDERS HAVE WARNED MAINSTREAM MEDIA AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS THAT MORE KEYS ARE MISSING FROM THE JACKSON COUNTY JAIL!!! Jackson County Insider: Another Frank White Jail Cover-Up More keys have been missing for some time (both to cells and handcuffs) and the County Executive Frank White Administration is working overtime to cover it up and keep it from the public. Knowledge of the cover-up goes all the way to the top, so Frank is going to start getting called on his "I don't know anything I'm just a ball player and I've only been running at the county for a year" bit. The Frank White Administration has refused to do much of anything to look for the keys because they are afraid the press would see the activity and find out they've been lying to the public for weeks. Even worse, the County's purported reporter from the STAR, has known this fact for over three weeks but has refused to even ask questions about this recent scandal because of his close quid-pro-quo "relationships" with the people in the current administration who have been feeding him dirt for several years. Also, keep a very close eye on the upcoming legislative audit of the hot-mess at the jail. This has the potential to undue any good will Frank may have left in the community as more and more of the cover-ups and incompetent leadership get directly linked to him. The Administration knows this and is working VERY HARD to derail it. Some employees are already quietly being told not to cooperate and to slow the process way down. Notice that Kansas City mainstream media has moved on from a shocking story of corruption, political scandal and public safety danger that impacts Jackson County and its residents.Rememberstarted the media firestorm about a month ago.Tragically, there has been very little follow-up reporting as female inmates have been moved back into the facility and the media spotlight has turned to the election.Here's the word and the warning of more trouble from our blog community along with a hope that the current Administration who doesn't face an election challenge will step up show some leadership:#############Developing . . . IN AN EXCLUSIVE MESSAGE TO TKC . . . TOP ECHELON MISSOURI INSIDERS EXPLAIN WHY THE MISSOURI DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS BEEN DEVASTATED BY THE HILLARY CLINTON E-MAIL CRISIS!!! "The shoe is on the other foot now. It looks like Hillary is tarnishing all the Missouri Democrats who wouldn't dare distance themselves from their candidate. Hillary is taking damage in the polls from this latest news and the fact is that she was never well liked. But in Missouri the situation is more dire from Democrats . . . This is a Red State and all of these guys were counting on the public rejecting Trump - THAT HASN'T HAPPENED. Missouri is strongly Republican controlled and those voters are unlikely to cross over to the Democrats down ballot. What's worse is that we're seeing very little excitement from Hillary Clinton voters and she's probably not going to draw a lot of new people to the polls in the same way that Trump has . . ." AG Koster Hurt By Hillary Most Of All Jason Kander Serving As Hillary Clinton Campaign Co-Chair Threatens To Thwart Claims Of Bringing Reform And Integrity To The Nation's Capitol Show-Me Democratic Party Ladies Suffering Guilt By Association With Hillary MISSOURI REPUBLICANS ARE TOUTING A TRUMP TIDAL WAVE IN MISSOURI THAT COULD DROWN OTHERWISE STRONG DEMOCRATIC PARTY CANDIDATES GIVEN THEIR AFFILIATION WITH HILLARY CLINTON!!! Mere days ago Missouri Democratic Party masterminds attempted to shame their competition with an association to GOP Prez contender Donald Trump after so many controversial statements. Now, in the aftermath of a disgraceful e-mail scandal haunting Hillary Clinton, turnabout is fair play backed by better polling for Republican in this Red State.To wit . . .The aftermath of thesimply reinforce Missouri already leaning toward Trump.Before the rundown, here's a look at the Show-ME State Trump effect . . .And so . . .Here's the word from Top Echelon Missouri Political Insider . . .So here's the run-down . . .A Democratic Party loss in the Governor's office would be devastating but Hillary taking such a serious hit late in the election seems to bolster challengerNotice AG Koster standing up for gun rights and unions as he courts Missouri Conservatives and his challenger continues to connect the AG to Hillary as he lambasts "insider" connections.Once again, so many contradictions hurt Jason Kander's candidacy . . .. Trump/Kander voters might be in short supply given how Sen. Roy Blunt's attack ads have done an effective job at connecting Hillary Clinton and Jason Kander in the minds of many Missouri voters and that affiliation now is more objectionable than newspapers questioning Blunt about his tacit Trump support.Robin Smith for Secretary Of State, Judy Baker For Missouri Treasurer And Teresa Hensley For Missouri Attorney General . . . Are all wonderful candidates who deserve individual consideration. Sadly, Missouri voters rejecting Hillary Clinton aren't going to turn around and vote for her lesser, local clones.Accordingly . . .Sadly, this is all hard to see from Democratic controlled Kansas City but even the local newspaper is offering a hint of the GOP surge that threatens Missouri.And whilst. . . What's clear is thatand so many Democratic Party denizens who thought that they'd able to capitalize on negative sentiment against the GOP blowhard Trump are now confronted by the tarnished image of their own national leader.You decide . . . Anarchists and members of anti-establishment groups clashed with riot police units on Alexandras Avenue, in downtown Athens, Monday morning, causing damages to parked cars in the surrounding area. The clashes reportedly started when the anarchists spotted Anarchists and members of anti-establishment groups clashed with riot police units on Alexandras Avenue, in downtown Athens, Monday morning, causing damages to parked cars in the surrounding area. The clashes reportedly started when the anarchists spotted a group of Golden Dawn members, an extreme right neo-Nazi party represented in the Greek parliament, passing by the area. The two groups engaged in rock throwing and clashes, before the riot police were called in to dispel the clashing parties. Police used sound and flash grenades to repel the youth, who responded by hurling rocks against the officers after climbing on the roof top of the building. 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 At least 30,000 people have been left homeless following a powerful 6.5 magnitude earthquake that hit provinces in central Italy on Sunday, according to Italian media. Over 200 aftershocks have been recorded since Sunday, while hundreds of houses across the central part of the counter have been completely destroyed due to the earthquakes over the past 2 months. The regions of Umbria and Marche will reportedly ask for aid from the neighbouring areas of Lambrusco and Emilia Romagna to facilitate the thousands of homeless people. According to the Italian Civil Protection services, 15,000 houses have been left without power, while the city of Norcia is facing problems with the water supply network, with numerous ancient structure razed to the ground. Monks of the historic Saint Benedicts monastery say the buildings Basilica has been destroyedI, with local TV stations showing one side of the structure in total ruins. Italian citizens can call a special phone line (45500) to donate 2 Euro for the relief of the victims. Major roads connecting the regions hit by the tremors have been cut off from Rome, which also felt the earthquake. Sundays earthquake was more powerful than the one that hit the city of LAquila in 2009, which had resulted in the death of nearly 300 people. 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 KPMG, a global network of professional firms providing audit, tax and advisory services, recently brought together over 85 internal audit leaders for an event on emerging trends in internal audit in Bahrain. Organised by KPMG Fakhro, the event held at the Radisson Blu hotel, provided practitioners and leaders an opportunity to hear about recent developments in the industry and best practices around key issues. The expert panel also shared critical information on how internal audit can turn insights, challenges and opportunities into value-added advantages in the current economic landscape. Guest speaker Khalifa Al Jowder, director of Accounts at the Central Bank of Bahrain and president of Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) Bahrain Chapter, said: The link between reliable financial information and sound decision-making has been evident throughout my career. Therefore, I believe it is important to be updated with the recent developments in internal audit which this event will help you to do. The half-day event included informative sessions by Granville Smith, managing partner for KPMGs Internal Audit practice in South Africa and Thomas Gouws, partner for Data & Analytics-enabled Internal Audit for KPMG in South Africa. The sessions aimed to help the attendees evaluate their organizations risk-taking propensity and the utilization of technology in internal audit functions. During his presentation, Granville Smith explained that technology advancement is changing the business environment, particularly when it comes to identifying, assessing and preparing for risks. Risk is inevitable; it is part of our everyday life. Being well prepared with the right knowledge and capabilities are key in mitigating risks. As the world is changing, it is important to be on top of the market trends to minimize the impact of risks and turn them to profitable advantages. To ensure organizations are moving on the right track and stay competitive, auditors need to adjust their thinking from the disruptive approach to risk management, towards innovative solutions, Smith commented. There is an increasing shift towards technology driven solutions in internal audit which we expect to be both disruptive to the profession whilst offering opportunities to provide enhanced insights and realize efficiencies. This is why KPMG has been investing in data and analytics globally and why we collaborate with technology providers to develop a living, global, digital platform for the future, Gouws added. The event also featured an interactive session to discuss the results of a survey conducted by KPMG a study on how data and analytics can enhance the internal audit value proposition to allow Bahrain-based internal auditors to evaluate and focus their functions towards repeatable and sustainable use of data and analytics. TradeArabia News Service In a major move, Saudi Capital Market Authority Board has given approval to expats living in the country to trade in the units of the real estate investment trust (REIT) traded funds in the Saudi bourse (Tadawul), said a report. The final version of the REIT Instructions was given the go-ahead by The Saudi Capital Market Authority Board yesterday (October 30), reported the Saudi Gazette. The instructions, the draft of which was published by the Capital Market Authority (CMA) in August, cover the management, operation and ownership of the funds. The capital markets regulator dubbed REIT as a real estate investment fund that is publicly offered and the units of which are traded on the exchange and whose primary investment objective is to invest in constructionally-developed real estates that generate periodic income; this includes residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural and other types of real estates. As per the rules, the fund must distribute a prescriptive percentage of the funds net profit in cash to the unit holders at least annually, it stated. Also the fund manager must appoint a real estate company or more than one company specialised in managing properties (property management company) after ensuring that the required approvals and licences are obtained from the relevant governmental agencies to manage the property held for investment. The new rules suggest that such companies must possess the necessary experience in real estate management, and should be responsible for carrying out property management activities including, but not limited to, maintenance, leasing services and rent collection. The fund manager may agree with the lessee - under a leasing contract - that the latter will manage and maintain the property during the contract period, said the report. CMA said this step comes as a part of its role in regulating and developing the kingdom's capital market as well as introducing new investment legislations to help provide new financial instruments and diversify investment opportunities therein in line with the National Transformation Program and Saudi Arabias Vision 2030, it stated. Moreover, the capital markets regulator has taken the international best practices and standards into consideration while preparing the instructions, said the report. In line with its (2015-2019) strategy, the CMA will conduct a number of initiatives to support the growth of this industry. Bahrain's Ministry of Housing has unveiled an ambitious blueprint that will see the construction of five mega residential projects across the kingdom featuring 65,000 homes, said a report. The key developments include the Northern Town, East Hidd Town, the Southern Town and Al Ramli housing scheme, reported The BNA. The ministry today (October 31) outlined a comprehensive strategy, in the presence of Housing Minister Basem bin Yacoub Al Hamer and other senior ministry officials. The session included a detailed presentation on the project. It also shed light on the planned five residential towns as well as that the land allocated for the housing units, public amenities, mosques, public parks and other facilities, said the report. Under this scheme, a total of 40,000 units will be built in these new towns along with 25,000 additional units under the Government Action Programme (GAP). Al Hamer was later briefed about the proposals which were submitted by relevant government departments, it added. Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) recently organised the Brazil-Arab Countries Economic Forum in Sao Paulo, Brazil, which was aimed at building stronger economic ties between Brazil and the Arab World. The one-day symposium witnessed the participation of leading local and foreign specialists who had gathered to discuss current issues such as the world economy, logistics and transportation, innovation in the Arab World, finance, and halal products and services as well as the Arab market, said a statement from ABCC. In addition, participants also reviewed success stories of leading businesses from Brazil and Arab countries, it said. According to the ABCC, the event served as a strategic platform for local businesses who are planning to explore opportunities in the Arab markets to get a greater insight about the region. It enabled them to gain insight about the Arabian economy, the markets, the consumption habits, and the transportation logistics which was discussed extensively across the forum's four scheduled panels, it added. The event featured leading Arab personalities, including Dr Mohammed Bin Ibrahim Al Tuwaijri, assistant secretary-general, head of the economic affairs, The League of Arab States; Mohamed Hany Khodair, Egypt vice minister of investment, and president of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI); and Tamara Al Gabbani, designer and owner of the UAE-based Tamara Al Gabbani Fashion Brand, said a statement. During the event, Al Tuwaijri delivered a lecture on innovation in the Arab world. Hany Khodair, on the other hand, participated in a panel discussion on the world economy, while Al Gabbani led the discussion group on success stories, it said. The forum discussed air travel and online certification of origin system that was developed by ABCC. It also featured various presentations and talks on the topics such as the halal market, Arab market as a whole, and how investors can find resources to develop our agro-industrial park, it stated. ABCC noted that the halal market is one of the worlds fastest growing markets today, it added. Dr Michel Alaby, secretary general and CEO, ABCC, said: These are exciting times for both Brazil and the Arab countries with region currently opening up potential opportunities for local Brazilian investors to invest in. We had organised the seminar to help them become more familiar with the process of setting up businesses in the Arab region as well as provide them an insight about key market segments that have high potential. Leading experts from various industry verticals had joined us in the symposium to share their knowledge and experience with the participants, he added. TradeArabia News Service Microsoft has announced that it will be making its comprehensive set of cloud services available to non-profit organisations and non-governmental organisations as part of its Modern Non-profit campaign. The Microsoft Suite of cloud services include Office 365, Dynamics CRM, Enterprise Mobility, Power BI, and now Microsoft Azure to help the modern non-profit do even more good in their communities. The offer comes from its Microsoft Philanthropies division and is in line with the software giants broadening commitment to corporate philanthropies; reiterated by participating as the bronze sponsor for Charity Innovation Conference 2016 held at ART Rotana Amwaj Islands Bahrain on October 23 and 24. Microsoft's presence at the charity event for the second year in a row affirmed its mission to deliver great technology within the community space; while meeting the greatest technological needs for a strong societal ecosystem. Hamad Al Saie, the public sector business development manager, Microsoft Bahrain & Oman, conducted a session titled 'Empowering the Modern Non-profit' at the conference, based on Microsofts commitment to empower non-profits to achieve more through cloud computing. The sessions addressed NGO sector concerns by showing how non-profits can achieve parameters of technological advancement and accelerate digital revolution. "Cloud computing is a vital resource for addressing the worlds problems, but for many non-profits, it is an expensive and missing link," remarked Al Saie. Our participation in the conference serves to complement Microsofts philanthropic initiatives which are geared towards creating opportunities for non-profits to help fuel the breakthroughs and discoveries that can change lives," he stated. Microsoft also delivered a workshop at the event for a select number of NGOs, with focus on cloud solutions for the millennial workforce and how non-profit organisations can access and leverage latest cloud tools to digitally transform their business, and transform the world. "We are committed to helping non-profit groups to use cloud computing to solve basic human challenges. One of our ambitions for Microsoft Philanthropies is to partner with these groups and ensure that cloud computing is accessible to a greater number of people and meets the widest range of societal needs," remarked Al Saie. In January 2016, Satya Nadella, the chief executive of Microsoft, announced that the company will donate $1 billion in cloud computing resources over the next three years to 70,000 non-profits and NGOs worldwide. "Technology is directly linked to the development of society, and our vision is to modernize the way NGOs and non-profits work today - thus solve some of the worlds biggest societal challenges," remarked Musab Al Shaikh, the official spokesman of the Charity Technology Innovation Conference 2016. "Microsofts participation in the conference is envisioned as a long-term partnership that helps us reaffirm our commitment to the society, paving a way for non-profits to learn, adopt and leverage the technology solutions they need, in order to make a difference today; for a better tomorrow, he stated. According to him, the cloud suite available to non-profits will empower them from the office to the field to achieve more. "Office 365 will enable staff and volunteers to collaborate and communicate effectively from anywhere at any time, while Dynamics CRM will help the non-profits manage relationships with donors, volunteers and beneficiaries, as well as drive decision making through actionable business intelligence with Power BI," said Al Shaikh. "Enterprise Mobility Suite, will enable manage devices, applications, and data on a cross-platform basis supported by industry-leading security and identity management services," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Renewable energy companies have started negotiations with foreign and domestic banking institutions in Egypt to finance the second phase of their feed-in tariff projects, a report said. A total of 124 companies and alliances are proceeding to the second phase, chairperson of the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) Mohamed Salah El-Sobky was quoted as saying in the Daily Egypt News report. Those are divided into 33 companies for wind projects, and 91 companies and alliances for solar power plantsall of which were included in the list of 136 eligible companies and alliances, he said. NREA owns land in Zafarana and west of the Nile, which will be provided to companies wishing to obtain lands for inaugurating solar power and wind energy plants to produce electricity within the second phase of the feed-in tariff projects, he explained. The second phase controls of the feed-in tariff projects stipulate that for solar energy projects, 70 per cent of the financing should be from foreign resources and 30 per cent from local sources. For wind energy projects 60 per cent of the finances should come from foreign financing resources and 40 per cent from local sources. Saudi Aramco, the worlds top exporter of crude oil and natural gas and Nabors Industries, a global leader in drilling rigs, have signed an agreement to form a new joint venture in Saudi Arabia to manage and operate onshore drilling rigs. The joint venture, which will be equally owned by Saudi Aramco and Nabors, is anticipated to be formed and commence operations in the second quarter of 2017. As part of its commitment to developing a competitive Saudi energy sector, Saudi Aramco has sought to localize industry hubs in order to foster economic diversification and job creation. This joint venture is one of the anchor projects that has grown out of this strategy which supports the wider development and localization of industries such as rig and rig equipment manufacturing and casting and forging. The joint venture will leverage Nabors' established business in Saudi Arabia to begin operations, with a focus on Saudi Arabia's existing and future onshore oil and gas fields. Saudi Aramco and Nabors will each contribute land rigs to the joint venture in the first years of operation along with capital commitments toward future onshore drilling rigs which will be manufactured in Saudi Arabia. Nabors chairman, president and CEO, Anthony G Petrello, stated: "Nabors has had a decades-long and a mutually beneficial relationship with Saudi Aramco. We welcome this opportunity to expand that relationship, extend our commitment to the Kingdom, and create a long-term, profitable growth partnership with high skills career opportunities for Saudi employees This venture represents a new chapter in the operator - contractor relationship. We fully expect the venture's shared interest and collaborative efforts to result in even higher levels of safety and efficiency, while enhancing Saudi Aramco's well productivity and cost savings, he added. TradeArabia News Service Halloween is fast approaching, and for those too old for plain old "Trick or Treat", Halloween brings more excitement and delight with old haunted houses and asylums, designed to up the paranormal activity. Here are the five scariest ones in America. 1. Terror on the Fox, Wisconsin This attraction has been scaring people for 20 years now, and this year will feature fresh blood banks on the Fox River, as well as an array of clowns and catacombs. Popular areas in Terror on the Fox include the Laughterhouse and The Deadman. 2. Brighton Asylum, New Jersey This place actually has a historical record of paranormal activity and was closed in the 1940s when staff started disappearing in this asylum for the mentally unstable and psychologically damaged. In addition, there were allegations of harsh living conditions, with residents near the area complaining of nightly screams, and even gross medical experiments. Morning News USA says the medical staff themselves were driven to insanity and were said to have been "clawing their own skin off, pulling their teeth out, cutting their eyelids off, and performing surgeries on themselves and each other." 3. Statesville Haunted Prison, Illinois This haunted prison challenges guests to go through 23 maximum security cells where they can get up close and personal with over 100 criminals "too evil to die", and are based on real life stories. After that, guests are led through the "City of the Dead" which features physical obstacles like caves and mine shafts where guests will have to escape from zombies. 4. Creep, Los Angeles This new concept of haunted house is inspired by Erebus Burwyck, fictional 1970s artist and outcast who one said, "I don't live in darkness; darkness lives in me" TimeOut says that the concept of this place plays not on how scary monsters are, but how twisted regular humans can be. Dark true to life stories are featured in this 45-minute interactive adventure. 5. Terror Behind the Walls, Philadelphia This attraction is also based on a haunted prison house on the Eastern State Penitentiary. This attraction boasts high quality special effects and animatronics. Hired actors are bedecked with top of the line props and makeup while the digital and lighting effects make this all too real. The best part is the "Machine Shop" which features "one-on-one" experiences with prisoners, are guests are led individually into cellblocks. Here are Five American Ghost Towns to visit for a paranormal experience and Filiming Locations in Georgia for "The Walking Dead" for zombie fans. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 In 1985, National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry snapped a picture of a young Afghan girl of 12-years old named Sharbat Gula, in the wake of the war in Afghanistan. Her picture, with her intense green eyes staring back, has become an icon and was an international wake-up call to the destruction of the Afghan war. Last October 25, Gula was arrested in Peshawar, on the count of fraudulent documents that allowed her to illegally stay in Pakistan. According to CNN, she can face up to 14 years in jail or deportation if found guilty. Gula was previously arrested just last year but was released. This ordeal is common among many Afghan refugees who have been fleeing and living in strife, like Gula, since 1985. Many refugees have made their way to Pakistan with about 1.5 million having a "proof of registration" card, which protects them from deportation, another 1 million who do not have these cards have resorted to forging them, like Gula has. Since May, Pakistan has gotten stricter on its crackdown of illegal refugees, when former Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour was killed and found in a drone strike in Baluchistan Province. McCurry, the original photographer, tells the New York Times, "I am committed to doing anything and everything possible to provide legal and financial support for her and her family. She has suffered throughout her entire life, and we believe that her arrest is an egregious violation of her human rights." McCurry went to the mountains of Afghanistan in 2002, in search of Gula, who was not identified in 1985 at the refugee camp she was staying in. She eventually found her, and discovered that she was of the Pashtun ethnic group who made their home in the mountains of Tora Bora, and they had a short reunion. She agreed to a second photograph by McCurry but only because her husband recommended that it would be proper. National Geographic published a new article about her, reading, "Time and hardship had erased her youth. Her skin looks like leather. The geometry of her jaw has softened. The eyes still glare; that has not softened." See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 With the continuing development and improvement on facilities going on in tourism-rich places, it would not be a surprise if travelers get ecstatic about their trip. A key to a memorable travel is a well-organized preparation. Avoid travel-epic-fails, here are the do's and don'ts to follow when traveling. Dos 1. Do stay alert. Being alert and keeping a good observation with what is happening around help travelers become proactive to anything or anyone that looks like a potential problem like the pickpockets. 2. Do keep extra pennies in secret pockets. When things get unfortunate and you happen to experience the cliche "lost my wallet during the trip" situation, the least that you can do is to either report to authorities or head back to the hotel. But how can you do these things if you do not have a single penny with you? This is where the secret pocket comes in. Secret pockets do not always have to be pockets attached to garments. You can keep cash with you in your shoes or anywhere that is not prone to get picked. In this way, you can still head back to the hotel or head to the nearest authorities where help is available. 3. Do secure important documents Important documents would include passport and identification cards. Securing these documents to a safe place is a priority. Losing these things on a trip is definitely one heck of a hassle. Dont's 1. Do not bring too much cash. Bring cash with you and leave some in your hotel room. Travelers are encouraged to bring less cash with them when roaming around as they are prone to get robbed. Also, as mentioned above, do keep extra pennies in your secret pockets. 2. Do not ever show off your gadgets. A crowded place is a pickpocket's playground. Showing off your gadget is like an invitation to snatchers. 3. Do not forget to adjust to locals. When traveling abroad, it is important to have at least a little knowledge about the culture of the locals especially on what is offensive and what is not. Fun and relaxation have always been our system's need from time to time. But before anything else, wouldn't a trip be more memorable if you come back home safe with all your valuables? Travel wisely, and avoid the hassle. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 A cargo plane of FedEx DC-10 catches fire on October 28 at Fort, Lauderdale, Florida Airport. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said that this was caused by the collapse of its landing gear, as reported by the Huffington Post. This led to the shutdown of the airport for hours that resulted to air traffic and delays. Based on CNN reports, a witness recorded a video shot on how the tail section of the aircraft exploded as fireball and recorded the frightened screams of people who have witnessed the incident. Mike Jachles of Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue said that the pilot and copilot escaped harm using a rope ladder on the right side of the aircraft, as further reported by CNN. He also affirmed that no members of the ground crews were hurt. "We were initially told, although it's not confirmed, that the left gear might have collapsed, which might have caused the engine to hit the tarmac," Jachles said. "There was a fuel leak and the fuel leak caught fire," he added. The plane's exterior near the left wing and engine has the major damage. The interior of the plane seemed to be undamaged. The plane was carrying FedEx shipments and US Mail, as explained by CNN. The fire occurred after the plane's landing gear collapsed as it touched the ground. Furthermore, Boeing MD-10 was operating as Flight 910 from Memphis, Tennessee, according to the FAA. Moreover, Davina Cole, FedEx Services Senior Communications Specialist, said that the company was cooperating with authorities. On the other hand, Boeing has not yet responded to a request for comment. According to CNN, the airport already reopened at 7 p.m. and was only using its south runway. Broward Aviation spokesman Greg Meyer said, "The north runway will remain closed until further notice. "The south runway can handle what we have right now," Meyer added, as reported in SunSentinel. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 Spending your dream vacation in the heart of Europe's finest beaches can ultimately give a relaxing respite from the island's bustling party scene. Whether you're planning to take a breath-taking escapade together with a tour or as a solo backpacker, or you want to spend time with family and friends, there is always a stunning stretch of coastline to suit everyone especially in the stunning beaches in Europe. Post Magazine has listed down their top European Beaches, as reported by South China Morning Post. This countdown, in no particular order, is about the best European beaches that have been featured in Post Magazine travel articles. The list are as follows: 1. Sardinia, Italy The Italian island has enough sublime stretches of squeaky sand to keep any self-respecting beach lover happy for weeks. Spiaggia della Pelosa or the La Pelosa beach with its shallow turquoise waters and salty white sands, is a true Sardinian oasis and arguably one of the best beaches of Europe, as described by the Sardinian Beaches.com 2. Costa Brava, Spain Northern Europeans usually spent two weeks in the large Costa Brava resorts and returned home with golden tans and souvenir castanets Sa Tuna Beach is described as one of the best golden beaches in Europe as it is known in its golden sands. 3. Crete, Greece The Greek island of Crete has three world-class beaches within an hour of each other: Elafonisi is a magical place known for its pale pink and white sands and inviting turquoise sea. Balos Lagoon is tagged as the most photographed beach in Crete. Falassarna Bay is famous for its large beach. It is huge enough to accommodate the summer crowds and has cafes, tavernas and hotels. 4. Blue Lagoon, Malta Accordingly, Malta is a "swim off the rocks" kind of place, with no outstanding beaches to speak of. Comino Island, is described as a sweep of talcum powder sand and gin-clear water known as the Blue Lagoon. 5. Fuerteventura, Spain The beaches in the Canary Island are described as heavenly as travelers visit the place and was mesmerized by its beauty. When winter comes to the rest of Europe, the water is still warm enough for swimming. The "vent" in Fuerteventura and Sotavento means "wind" but there are plenty of calm days, too, as explained by South China Morning Post. See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018 Without pollinators from beetles to bats, from lemurs to lorikeets, from geckos to genets, from honey possums to honeycreepers there isn't much on this planet that could survive. Including us humans. If you want to learn more about how to support pollinators around the world, check out the Pollinator Partnership . Pollination isn't only the territory of bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. In fact, a surprising number of animals play a role in the survival of flowering plants. We're taking a closer look at animals around the world that spread pollen in their search for sweet nectar treats. 1 of 9 Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur David C. Azor / Shutterstock The physically largest pollinator is the black-and-white ruffed lemur. This lemur is the primary pollinator of the traveler's palm or traveler's tree. When ruffed lemurs reach into the flower to snack on the nectar, they get pollen all over their snouts. They then carry the pollen to the next flower they visit. The structure of the traveler's palm suggests it evolved for pollination by larger animals. It has flowers surrounded by sturdy leaves that take some strength and skill to open. Those flowers produce enough nectar to satisfy an animal as big as a lemur. 2 of 9 Honey Possum Oxford Scientific / Getty Images Pollination by vertebrates is called zoophily. While species like hummingbirds and nectar-drinking bats get most of the credit for pollination in this department, there are a few other species that also take part, including the humble honey possum. This species pollinates Australia's banksia and eucalyptus flowers. The minuscule marsupial grows to only about 2.6 to 3.5 inches long and merely half the weight of a mouse. It's one of the few entirely nectarivorous mammals in the world meaning it feeds primarily on nectar to survive so it is specially adapted to assist with pollination. Aside from its extra-long tongue, which helps it reach the nectar, the honey possum also has a prehensile tail so it can hang from branches as it searches for flowers. While drinking nectar, its long pointed snout becomes covered in pollen, which the animal distributes. 3 of 9 Lizards Bildagentur Zoonar GmbH / Shutterstock Lizards, geckos, and skinks may be unexpected pollinators, but they are highly important. For example, the Noronha skink pollinates the mulungu tree on Fernando de Noronha Archipelago in Brazil. Meanwhile, on the island of Mauritius, the blue-tailed day gecko is the primary pollinator of the rare Trochetia flower. Both of these reptiles have a big job as important assistants in the survival of flowering plants on islands where fewer insects visit the flowers. 4 of 9 Rainbow Lorikeet Jun Zhang / Shutterstock Many birds are important pollinators, but few people would suspect that a small parrot is one of them. The rainbow lorikeet, native to Australia and Indonesia, is as colorful as the flowers it visits. The species is particularly adapted to feed on nectar and pollen, including having a tongue with tiny hair-like structures called papilla that assist in gathering up as much nectar from a flower as possible. The pollen that brushes against the bird's forehead and throat is spread to other flowers as it feeds. 5 of 9 Large-Spotted Genet Martin Mecnarowsk i / Shutterstock Even meat-eating animals can be pollinators, such as the large-spotted genet. Genets are carnivores found in Africa that resemble spotted cats with pointy muzzles and long ringed tails. In a 2015 study, researchers from the University of Cape Town in South Africa caught both genets and the carnivorous cape grey mongoose snacking on sugarbush and reported that these animals contribute to the pollination of the plants they dine on. Because these animals are infrequent visitors to flowering plants, they don't play a particularly large role as pollinators. But the researchers suggest that because they travel long distances, they may help disperse pollen farther away. 6 of 9 Ants Kosin Saetia / Shutterstock Ants are known for many things, but their role in pollination is probably far down the list. However, when you consider how often ants invade kitchens in search of sugary treats, it's not surprising that they also invade flowering plants in search of sweet nectar. In return, they help plant reproduction. The plants that usually benefit from ants as pollinators are species that grow low to the ground and have inconspicuous flowers close to the stem. According to the USDA Forest Service, however, there are some ant species that harm the pollen of flowers. Still, scientists are continuing to learn about the role these critters play in pollinating the planet. 7 of 9 Bats EcoPrint / Shutterstock Bats are important pollinators, but many people don't appreciate the amazing array of species that pollinate plants around the world nor how amazingly adapted they are for their job. For instance, the tube-lipped nectar bat (Anoura fistulata) of Ecuador has the longest tongue relative to body size of any mammal in the world, which helps it reach nectar deep inside tube-shaped flowers. Bats as large as flying foxes, such as the one pictured here, are key for pollination of plants such as eucalyptus, and they are the only known pollinator of some species of rainforest plants. In fact, bats are so important that some plants have evolved to be pollinated exclusively by bats. One example is agave, the plant from which we get sweeteners, fibers, and tequila. Its flowers open only at night and smell like rotting fruit to attract bats. 8 of 9 Beetles Marek Velechovsky / Shutterstock Beetles have been pollinators for millions of years. In fact, it's thought that they were among the first insects to visit flowering plants as far back as 200 million years ago. And today's beetles still love flowering plants with close ties to ancient species, such as magnolias and water lilies. Plants that are dependent on beetles for pollination are called cantharophilous plants. Tiny homes have been spotted in all manner of climates, including in Canada's seriously cold far north. Coming back down south a little closer to Ontario's cottage country, Toronto-based company Greenmoxie has built a tiny house that has rustic leanings reminiscent of a cozy lakeside cabin, yet also has the contemporary styling and off-grid capabilities of a modern, sustainable home. Greenmoxie Designed and built by David Shephard and Ian Fotheringham, the Greenmoxie tiny house features a blackened cedar exterior treated in the Japanese shou sugi ban method of charring, which preserves the wood, making it more fire- and pest-resistant. There's a drawbridge deck that can be electrically lowered or lifted, allowing for extra space perfect for lounging or having a meal outdoors. Greenmoxie The 30-foot-long, 8.5-foot-wide and 13.5-foot-high, 340-square-foot interior uses reclaimed materials like windows and barn wood to light up and warm up the space. The space is arranged to emphasize an open length, with full-height shelving and seating bench hugging the walls rather than protruding out. There's a RV-style table surface that acts as a coffee table at the sitting area, but can be moved over to the large windows where it can be transformed into a dining table. Greenmoxie Greenmoxie Greenmoxie The kitchen has a full-size range, and a large sink. There is a mini-woodstove as well as a propane heater to warm up the space. There is storage shelving under the stairs leading up to the sleeping loft. Upstairs, there are opposing windows to help with cross-ventilation, and on the roof, solar panels. Rainwater is harvested in a 200-liter rain barrel, and the home uses a graywater holding tank that would allow residents to recycle their water. Greenmoxie Greenmoxie Greenmoxie Greenmoxie The spacious bathroom has a composting toilet and a rainfall-style shower. Greenmoxie Greenmoxie Lots nice details in this well-built, 12,000-pound tiny home that also has that modern cabin flavour, but it doesn't come cheap -- according to New Atlas, it's pegged at around USD $65,000, making it very much more of a luxury category dwelling. You can see more detailed specs over at Greenmoxie. Tribune News service Amritsar, October 31 Fifty years ago, the Punjabis earned the right to have a state of their own based on their linguistic and cultural identity. And on Tuesday morning, the holy city of Amritsar will become witness to the celebrations of the glorious formation of Punjabi Suba. To commemorate the history and struggle of Punjab and its heroes as well as to celebrate the modern-day Punjab and its prominent achievers, the grand celebrations will be held inside the specially created set inside the walled city. To begin with the proceedings, the State government would felicitate the Sangharshi Yodhas and their families at a rally in Ranjit Avenue and in later half of the day, a mega cultural bonanza would be held at Town Hall, Amritsar. Arun Jaitely, Union Minister of Finance & Corporate Affairs would be the chief guest and Amit Shah, National President, BJP would be the guest of honour. The Chief Minister of Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Minister, Sukhbir Singh Badal along with the Cabinet Ministers, MPs and MLAs would also take part in the celebrations. Divulging into the details of the concluding cultural show to mark the semi-centennial anniversary of state of Punjab, he said that the programme would present for the first time in the world there will be a sky projection that will create an amazing immersive experience. Besides, a 3D mapping on a large format (270 feet by 50 feet) will be there throughout the show. A special attraction would be four levels of stage with a unique water stage. Hi-tech laser show with helio-sphere and goblet drones will be an eye-catcher. There would also be a grand 20 minute theatrical tribute to Punjabs rich heritage and legacy from the victory over Mughals to the creation and celebration of Punjab Suba. Performances by Gurdas Mann and Jaspinder Narula, the legendary superstars from Punjab along with more than 300 performers and dancers will add zing to the grand celebrations. Prominent Punjabi achievers of national and international fame would be honored during the celebrations. Chief Secretary Sarvesh Kaushal inspected the preparations and held a meeting with officials including DGP Punjab Suresh Arora, Satish Chandra, deputy CMs chief secretary and secretary media and information, Rahul Tiwari, police officers Hardeep Singh Dhillon, Naresh Arora, commissioner Police Amritsar, Amar Singh Chahal, Lok Nath Angra, commissioner Police Jalandhar division, Amritsar DC Varun Roojam and MC Commisoner Sonali Giri. Meanwhile, the hundred of policemen deployed on the site for security seemed a tired and unhappy lot as they complained about the lack of food and drinking water arrangements. Tribune News Service Amritsar, October 31 A city-based NGO Amritsar Vikas Manch (AVM) has appealed to Jet Airways and its partner Etihad Airways to start international flights from the holy city. The AVM patron, Dr Charanjit Gumtala, said, In a major setback to the Punjabis, Jet Airways has once again left Sri Guru Ramdasjee International Airport out of its 2017 list for expansion of its flights to Abu Dhabi that serves as a convenient hub for travel to destinations in Europe, Middle East, Africa, North and South America. Jet and Etihad Airways have announced plans to further boost connectivity between India and the United Arab Emirates. Gumtala said Punjabis had been demanding start of the direct flight for a long time. It would allow passengers to avail themselves multiple travel options via Abu Dhabi to various destinations in the world. In 2013, after its deal with Etihad, Jet Airways had planned to connect 23 Indian cities to Abu Dhabi. Jet Airways was to fly from six more destinations to Abu Dhabi, including Amritsar by end of 2014. All other cities except Amritsar were connected to Abu Dhabi in 2015. Now, in an expansion the company has announced to start flights from Abu Dhabi to Chandigarh in the second half of 2017 subject to appropriate regulatory approvals and completion of operational readiness at the airport in Mohali. Etihad flies to San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Toronto and other destinations in the USA and Canada, which have high Punjabi population. In 2009, Jet Airways had withdrawn its flight to London from Amritsar and continued to fly passengers to international destinations via Delhi. It added long layover times for passengers in Delhi, besides giving more business to the airport in the national Capital, which was run by a private company. In a statement here today Gumtala while quoting a data released by the Airport Authority of India (AAI) said, Dubai and Doha are recording the highest number of international passenger traffic from Amritsar in first half of 2016. It shows that these flights are running at more than 90 per cent load factor. Air India Express and Spice Jet are the two airlines operating direct flight to Dubai. These flights are successful despite the fact that passengers cannot fly to other destinations in the world as they do not have code share with any other airlines. Abu Dhabi is only 40 minutes from Dubai and a major hub for Jet/Etihad. Qatar Airways, a competitor of Jet/Etihad, is doing good business with its flights from Amritsar to Doha and connecting passengers to all of its more than 140 destinations around the world. Gumtala said Jet Airways had announced to start flights from Chandigarh in second half of 2017 subject to regulatory approvals and operational readiness at the airport. Amritsar airport already has all facilities available for international flights, he added. Presently, there are seven airlines operating non-stop international flights from Guru Ramdasjee Airport. In the last 12 months, airport has recorded 27 per cent month over month (MoM) growth on an average. It is expected to cross 1.5 million full year passengers posting higher annual growth rate. This is still much below its full potential. The airport runway repair will be completed in March 2017 with CAT-IIIB system installation that allows flights to land in almost zero visibility during foggy season. Parveen Arora Tribune News Service Antehri (Kshetra), October 31 Famous as a village of soldiers, Antheri on Sunday bid a tearful adieu to its son, sepoy Mandeep Singh (26), who was killed and beheaded by terrorists near the Line of Control in Macchil sector of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday. Mandeep was cremated with military honours. His father Phool Singh lit the pyre; an 11-gun salute was given to him. As the body reached the village, people thronged the martyrs house to pay their last respects. As a tribute, villagers did not celebrate Diwali; they lighted diyas (earthen lamps) in his memory. The 26-year-old soldier, who joined the 17th Sikh Light Infantry as a sepoy in 2008 and had got married in 2014. He was scheduled to return to his village to celebrate Diwali and attend the housewarming of his house. Instead, he returned in a coffin. CM Khattar, along with several ministers and MLAs, attended the funeral procession. He offered condolences to the bereaved family. Villagers demanded of the CM to promote Mandeeps widow Prerna, who is a constable in the Haryana Police and posted at Shahbad Markanda. Besides, they demanded a memorial in Mandeeps memory and urged the government to avenge his killing to teach Pakistan a lesson. Khattar said, We will teach them (Pakistan) a lesson and will avenge this (Mandeeps killing). The martyr laid down his life for the nation. In this hour of grief, we stand behind the family. We will help them in every manner.On the memorial, he said the state government would consider raising a memorial or naming a road after the martyr. Mandeep was the youngest of two sons of Phool Singh, a truck driver. Sumedha Sharma Tribune News service Gurugram, October 31 Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today saw the dress rehearsal for the Swarna Jayanti celebrations of the states formation evening. He seemed confident of mega show tomorrow. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the chief guest at tomorrows event at Tau Devi Lal Stadium here. Apart from Modi and Khattar, Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states, 3,000 VIPs, 800 VVIPs, and more than 50,000 other visitors are expected to attend the event. Out to exhibit efficiency, the police have made elaborate security arrangements at the venue. More than 4,500 police personnel and six teams of the CIDs bomb disposal squad have been deployed. Arvind Hooda, Additional Director (Technical), CID, is leading the teams. The venue will have a five-tier security plan. The first layer will have around 50 commandos from Special Protection Group (SPG), while the second tier will have National Security Guard (NSG) commandos. The third tier will monitor seven parking lots. All vehicles will be checked and guards will supervise the parking of vehicles. Five monitoring rooms will be set up in parking lots, from where policemen as well as special personnel will keep an eye on CCTV cameras. The fourth layer will be posted at the outer periphery wall, entry and exit points of the venue, and all roads leading to the venue. Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT) teams and Quick Response Team (QRT) commandos will be deployed around the boundary wall. The fifth layer will focus on roof-top monitoring to deal with threat of any disturbance from roofs of nearby high-rises. The entire force, including traffic police, is working hard to ensure hassle-free event. We have more than required cops on duty. Nevertheless, we seek support of citizens on making the event a success. Traffic diversions have been made, said Commissioner of Police (CP) Sandeep Khirwar. The district administration has worked tirelessly to make the function a success, said DC TL Satya Prakash. Meanwhile, city has also for a quick facelift especially on important junctures and routes leading to the venue. The administration has cleared roads and repaired them, and installed lights where required. Movement of heavy vehicles banned Karnal: Special arrangements have been made to regulate traffic in Gurugram for the inaugural event to mark the beginning of the Golden Jubilee celebrations on November 1. Movement of heavy vehicles will be banned from 5pm on October 31 to 9am on November 2. Sibash Kabiraj, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Traffic and Highways) told The Tribune that 25 barricades have been installed to regulate traffic in the city. Of these, three barricades have been erected in Faridabad, Jhajjar (7), Nuh and Rewari (6), Palwal (2) and Sonepat (1). TNS BJP out to impress PM: Congress The Congress has accused the government going berserk to appease Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Congress leader Aftab Ahmed said, The party is proud of the state and its development. But the government is only bothered about making it to the good books of Modi. We are the ones who worked for decades to make the state what it is, but we are not even invited to the function. Had it truly been the celebration of the spirit of the state, the government would have not left out former ministers. Pradeep Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh October 31 Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today claimed that there was no bitterness with Punjab over the golden jubilee celebrations of Haryanas creation and Punjabs parallel celebrations of creation of Punjabi Suba. Answering a specific query on Haryanas golden jubilee celebrations and Punjabs parallel Punjabi Suba celebrations, Khattar said every state had a right to celebrate its formation and showcase its achievements. Haryana which was carved out as a separate state from Punjab on November 1, 1966, shares a legacy of problems, including claim over Chandigarh, joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, SYL waters issue and the Hindi-speaking areas. While Haryana has planned a grand year-long celebrations, which will be kicked off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Gurugram tomorrow, Punjab is holding parallel celebrations at Amritsar tomorrow. Initially Punjab, ruled by the SAD-BJP combine, was keen to invite Modi for the celebrations. However, the BJP Government in Haryana apparently prevailed over the Prime Minister with the result that now BJP chief Amit Shah and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley would represent the BJP and the Central Government at the Amristar function. The SAD and the BJP are jointly fighting the Assembly elections in Punjab scheduled for February next year. Saurabh Malik Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 31 In a significant judgment, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed Maharshi Dayanand University to pay a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to a wronged lecturer, whose services were erroneously terminated 18 years back. For the purpose of paying the compensation in lieu of reinstatement, the High Court has also set a six-week deadline. Justice Rajiv Narain Raina has further made it clear that the failure to pay the relief within the deadline would entitle the petitioner to 12 per cent interest. The petitioner, Dr Prabal Jyoti, had committed a mistake in the process of setting a paper for a varsity examination. As an internal paper-setter, she repeated the same question in two sets of papers. The requirement, however, was two different sets of question papers. The petitioner apologised for the mistake and undertook not to repeat it. Somewhat irked, the Vice-Chancellor ordered against making her a paper-setter again. But the varsity Registrar issued the termination order after completely misunderstanding the Vice-Chancellors instructions. Taking up the petition filed way back in 1998, Justice Raina observed the Vice-Chancellor admitted that he never meant the termination of the petitioners services. But her services were brought to an end by a stigmatic order due to a grave communication gap. The varsity also agreed that the Vice-Chancellor did not have the power to terminate the services of lecturers, like the petitioner. The power, rather, was with the Executive Council. Justice Raina also observed the petitioner was appointed against a leave vacancy in place of a professor, who never returned from leave. As such, the appointment was not of the regular kind although the mode of selection was fair and a proper procedure was adopted. Referring to the arguments by the petitioners counsel regarding instances of regularisation of services against leave vacancies in the past in such situations, Justice Raina asserted the same may be true. But it was far too late for the court to do much for returning the petitioner to varsity employment. It is reasonable to believe she must have made a career elsewhere of whatever kind, good, bad or indifferent. Two decades is enough to lose skills of teaching and past academic milestones can never be retraced. It would neither be fair to her, the university and its students to be foisted a rusted mind. This is the inevitable consequence of passing time. Dubbing the termination order illegal, Justice Raina added it was also apparently stigmatic. The stigma of the order is removed by expunging the offensive part of the order retrospectively. This court directs the respondent university to pay a compensation of Rs 5 lakhs Tribune News Service Shimla, October 31 Himachal Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh was suddenly taken ill last night and admitted to Indira Gandhi medical college (HPMC) hospital after he complained of acute cough and breathlessness. Singh, who recently toured the remote Dodra Kwar area of Shimla, was feeling uneasy due to dust pollution and his cough aggravated due to smoke of crackers and fireworks and his personal physician Dr Machhan was called at mid night and he was rushed to hospital. Senior Medical Superintendent, IGMC, Dr Romesh said that the Chief Minister was nebulized and is feeling relieved. All his tests are normal and his condition is stable but he has been kept under observation and would be discharged from the hospital soon, he added. The Chief Minister and his family members were present in the house when he fell ill as the staff had gone due to Diwali. Those who made a beeline to the IGMC to enquire about the health of Virbhadra Singh included Governor Acharya Devvrat, Union Health Minister J PNadda, Cabinet ministers Vidya Stokes, Dhani Ram Shandil and Thakur Singh Bharmauri, former BJP ministers Rajiv Bindal, Jai Ram Thakur and HPCC president Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu. Tribune News Service Shimla, October 31 Even as he evaded a direct reply to his return to state politics, Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda today hit out at Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh stating that he should have resigned as all the cases faced by him were blatant and being probed by independent investigating agencies. Interacting with the media at Shimla Press Club here today, Nadda squarely blamed the slackness in governance on the pre-occupation of the Chief Minister with his cases in various courts of law. There can be any amount of speculation but the fact is that these are blatant cases which are being probed by investigating agencies without any political interference as per the law of the land, he remarked. Nadda listed almost a dozen development projects, especially those in the Health Department, pending for want of action on the part of the state government. I have time and again been reiterating that Himachal must take benefit of the congenial political environment and make projects move, whether it is preparing DPRs or providing land for major project, he remarked. The minister said he had on a number of occasions asked the Himachal Government to act fast and utilize all the funds made available so that more and more benefit can be derived. He added that the delay in selection of site or completion of DPR was hampering several projects like Shimla Trauma Centre, Super Specialty Centre, Tertiary Care Centre at Mandi, Hamirpur Medical College and cancer centre. Fortunately, both the BJP PM - Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi have a special fondness for the state, which has helped us get a special preference whether it concern the special industrial package or 90:10 funding pattern, he detailed. Asked if he would like to return to state politics and be the CM candidate for the 2017 Assembly polls, Nadda said he never believed in replying to hypothetical queries. My current assignment is keeping me extremely busy and I want the state to benefit from it, he remarked while avoiding a direct reply. However, when asked if the BJP would project a CM candidate before the Assembly polls, he said this was solely the prerogative of the BJP Parliamentary Board of which he too is a member. The BJP contests the elections to win, irrespective of who is leading the rival party and we are fully prepared to take on the Congress in the Assembly polls, he said when asked if Virbhadra leading his party in the polls would help BJP win. Nadda said several schemes of the Modi regime like financial inclusion of 28 crore bank account holders, social security through Jeevan Jyoti Beema Yojna, health insurance cover, crop insurance and dialysis project would benefit the weaker section and every common man. He said setting up of AIIMS at Bilaspur, four new medical colleges, trauma centres and super-specialty centres worth several hundreds of crores for Himachal would help strengthen health infrastructure and latest facilities at the peoples door step. Bhanu P Lohumi Tribune News Service Shimla, October 31 Barring stray incidents of small fires, Diwali, the festival of lights, passed off peacefully and there were no reports of loss of life or major injury. About 18 incidents of minor fire were reported from various parts of the district and barring a fire in a building adjoining Aastha Hospital in Panthaghati in which property worth Rs 10 lakh was destroyed, there was no major incident. No major fire was reported during the festival, said SR Mardi, DGP, Home Guards and Civil Defence. A fire broke out at midnight (1.12 am) at a depot on the ground floor of a building owned by TR Bragta at Panthaghati on the outskirts of Shimla. Three machines and wooden doors and windows in the store were burnt, but no casualty was reported, sources at the fire station said. The local administration had taken adequate steps to check fire or any other untoward incident and locations for sale, storage and use of crackers were clearly notified and a few violations were reported. Only six burn cases were reported, out of which five were reported in DDU hospital while one case was reported at the IGMC, Shimla, on Diwali. Pathron Ka Mela (stone-pelting festival) Like every year, Dhami residents, kept the century-old tradition alive by celebrating the stone-pelting festival. The mela is held a day after Diwali at Dhami village, about 25 km from here. Two groups of villagers indulged in stone throwing for about 15 minutes. The ritual came to end when a youth of the Jamogi group, Hukum Chand, suffered a face injury. No serious injury was caused to any person as the district administration had made adequate arrangements. While others call it a cruel act, the villagers are enthusiastic and turn up in large numbers to celebrate the festival. It comes to an end after applying tilak on the idol of Goddess Kali, said Ranjit, general secretary of the mela organising committee. The locals, dressed in new clothes, line up on the grassy slopes and pelt stones at the royal family members after the arrival of the deity from the Nara Singh and Kali Devi Temple housed in Dhamis palace. The two groups comprise those representing the erstwhile royal family of Dhami (Dagoi, Turnu, Kateru and Jatheru villages) and residents of the Jamogi area). The injured person smears a tilak on the forehead of the idol of Goddess Kali with his/her blood. Getting injured is considered auspicious as the blood of the tilak is smeared on the forehead of Goddess Kali. As per the legend, the ritual started after the practice of human sacrifice to appease the Goddess was stopped by the erstwhile rulers of Dhami. Tribune News Service Srinagar/Anantnag, October 31 At least 50 people, including women, were injured in clashes between locals and the police in Rohmoo village of Pulwama district in south Kashmir today. Three of the injured, including two girls, have been shifted to Srinagar with pellet injuries on their eyes. The incident took place after the police raided Rohmoo village and tried to take down banners eulogising militants. People started protesting against the police. The police and security forces used tear-gas shells and pellet guns to disperse people leaving at least 50 people injured, sources said, adding that the injured were treated at different hospitals. A doctor at the Pulwama district hospital said they had shifted at least three persons, including two girls, to Srinagar for specialised treatment. Later, clashes erupted in many other parts of the district. A police spokesman in Srinagar said some persons, police and CRPF personnel, including three officers, were injured in the incident. Most of the injured were discharged after first aid, he added. The incident took place when security forces cordoned off Rohomoo village. This made miscreants throw stones on the forces. Later, a huge mob assembled and threw stones on the security forces camp, the police said. Elsewhere in the Valley, the overall situation remained peaceful amid the shutdown called by separatists and restrictions in major towns on the day 115 of the unrest today. There was no curfew in any part of the Valley, officials said. Some miscreants hurled a petrol bomb near the sub-district hospital at Sopore in Baramulla district, the police said. A manhunt has been launched to arrest the miscreants. An increased movement of pedestrians and vehicles was witnessed on the city roads and other major towns of the Valley. The footpath vendors have been lining up all major road intersections and some of the markets along different roads, particularly the posh Residency Road from TRC crossing to Lal Chowk and also up to Batamaloo here. A large number of private vehicles and autorickshaws have been moving in different parts of the city and other major towns in the Valley, giving a semblance of normalcy. However, the main markets continue to remain closed and public transport is off the roads in response to the protest calendar of the separatist leaders. Jammu, October 31 An elderly woman and a 20-year-old soldier were killed in cross-border shelling and firing in Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. Three more people two armymen and a civilian were injured. Rifleman Bimal Tamang was killed in Pakistani shelling in Rajouri sector along the Line of Control (LoC), army said. "Ceasefire violations in Rajouri sector being retaliated with massive fire assault," spokesman of the Army's Northern Command said. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The woman identified as Rasheeda Bi, 60, was killed while her 22-year-old daughter Najma was injured in shelling in Poonchs Goulad village, police said. Rasheeda Bi is the second woman in Goulad village in Balakote sector to die in Pakistani shelling: Usma Bi, 50, was killed on October 28,. This morning, Pakistani troops resorted to firing and shelling on the Indian positions and the civilian villages in the Balakote, Mankote belts of Mendhar tehsil in Poonch district, an army officer said. "Pakistani troops indulged in unprovoked ceasefire violation from 900 am in the Balakote sector using 120 mm and 82 mm mortars, automatic and small arms," the officer said. He said Indian troops responded appropriately and befittingly. Pakistani troops also violated ceasefire in several areas of Rajouri district this afternoon, the officer said. There was a lull along the International Border since 9 am on Monday after ceasefire violations by Pakistani Rangers on Sunday. There have been more that 60 truce violations by Pakistani troops along the LoC and the International Border in the state since surgical strikes against terror launch pads by the Indian Army in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on September 28. Thirteen people, including three civilians, and eight security personnel were killed and over 40 people mostly civilians were injured in the incidents. PTI Ishfaq Tantry Tribune News Service Srinagar, October 31 The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has dismissed a writ petition questioning the constitution of a committee for fixing the fee structure of the private unaided educational institutions. It has said the constitution of such a committee to fix the fee structure of the schools was within the regulatory measures and cannot be treated as a restrictive measure of the government in running the administration of the schools. Quoting an apex court verdict, the High Court further observed that for the larger interest of the student community, the state could not monitor the fee structure to be charged from the students. A division bench of Chief Justice N Paul Vasanthakumar and Justice Alok Aradhe, in its judgment made available today, observed that commercialisation and exploitation was not permissible while running educational institutions as they were supposed to be run on a no-profit-no-loss basis. The petition was filed by the Joint Committee of Private Schools after the government constituted a committee for fixing the fee structure of private unaided educational institutions and asked the flood-hit schools not to charge fee of September/October 2014 from students. Section 12 (4) (of the J&K Education Act) states that the government shall prescribe norms and conditions for the functioning of the recognised schools. Thus the government is empowered to prescribe norms and conditions for functioning of the recognised schools which include constitution of a committee to fix the fee structure, the bench said while dismissing the petition. The Supreme Court, while answering the question as to whether the educational institutions are entitled to fix their own fee structure, held that there could be no rigid fee structure and each institution must have freedom to fix its own fee structure after taking into account the need to generate funds to run the institution and to provide facilities necessary for the benefit of the students. It was further held that the fee structure must be fixed keeping in mind the infrastructure and facilities available, investment made, salaries paid to the teachers and staff, future plans for expansion and or betterment of institution, subject to two restrictions namely non-profiteering and non-charging of capitation fee, the High Court said while referring to a similar case before the Supreme Court in the decision delivered in Modern School versus Union of India in 2004. Thus it is evident that the committee for fixing the fee structure created by the government through order No. 520-Edu of 2013 dated 07.05.2013 is in tune with the directions issued by the Supreme Court, which is binding on the state government under Article 142 of the Constitution, High Court said. The High Court also rejected a plea by the Joint Committee of Private Schools that its representatives be made part of the Fee Fixation Committee, saying individual schools have to justify the enhancement of fee. Ishfaq Tantry Tribune News Service Srinagar, October 31 Observing that it is the collective responsibility of all to save the school buildings from mysterious fires, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed the state government to ask all Deputy Commissioners and Chief Education Officers concerned in districts of the Kashmir valley to take preventive and protective measures for saving the schools from mysterious enemies of education. It said the mysterious enemies of education should be unmasked and dealt with an iron hand while seeking a comprehensive and consolidated compliance report from the government within a week. Taking suo motu cognisance of burning of school buildings in Kashmir, the High Court in its orders today observed that the state administration was still in deep slumber and appeared to have not devised any protective policy for protecting school buildings from the mysterious fires. During the ongoing unrest in the Kashmir valley, more than 25 schools have been destroyed in mysterious fires. On Sunday, unidentified arsonists set ablaze a school building in Anantnag district. Observing that education is the main factor for intellectual excellence and prosperity, the court said that that by burning a school building, a mysterious person might enjoy its flames and smoke but that sadistic enjoyment could be only for an hour or so, least realising that he was darkening the educational atmosphere. The mysterious burning of centres of learning (school buildings) has sent shock waves, awakening all to ponder, a division bench of Justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir and Ali Mohammad Magrey observed in its orders today. The bench pointing out to newspaper reports about burning of educational institutions in Kashmir. On hearing about such unfortunate and horrendous episodes, everybody bleeds. it said. There has been no classwork in any school in the Valley during the past 112 days of the unrest. Though the authorities claimed they had registered cases, taken up investigation and arrested many suspects behind the attacks on school buildings, the High Court today was not satisfied with the response of the authorities, particularly of Advocate General Jahangir Iqbal Ganai, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Baseer Khan, Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Javaid Gillani, Director of School Education Ajaz Ahmad Bhat, who were present in the court today. These authorities in one voice stated that there were inherent hardships to provide security to each and every school of the state. With this reply, we are not satisfied because it is the responsibility of the state to protect public property, more particularly the school buildings. It appears that till now the authorities at various levels have not taken a call by sitting together for devising methods and measures for protecting these schools buildings from being burnt. The HC further directed the Chief Secretary, Director General of Police and the Director of School Education to issue instructions to all DCs, SPs and CEOs concerned to take preventive and protective measures, as shall be necessary, for saving the school buildings from being burnt. Singapore, October 31 India will get electricity generated by wind-propelled plants installed in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu in about five years as part of the countrys green energy development programmes, an energy expert has said. We are preparing India for offshore wind (and) providing MNRE a roadmap for offshore wind for Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, said Mathias Steck, Executive Vice President and Regional Manager at DNV GL, an international renewable energy group. It would take three to five years that we see commercial offshore winds projects in India, said Steck, who is an expert in renewable energy at DNV GL, which has a 30-consultant team in India and made its entry into the Indian market in 1989. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) A 100-megawatt pilot project will likely be installed in ocean off Gujarat in about three years, he said on the sidelines of the Singapore International Energy Week held last week. It is to kickstart a new power generating sector under the Facilitating Offshore Wind in Industry (FOWIND) programme funded by the European Union. A FOWIND consortium has done a series of report on wind conditions for wind-generated electricity and its integration into a grid along the coastlines of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. FOWIND is supported by Euro 4 million grant from the Indo-European Cooperation on Renewable Energy programme and Euro 500,000 contribution through the Gujarat Power Corp Ltd (GPCL). The consortium, Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), comprises GPCL, DNV GL, the Centre for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP), and the World Institute of Sustainable Energy (WISE). The project is being implemented in close cooperation with Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and National Institute of Wind Energy. Over the time DNV GL has been in India, we have looked over 50-gigawatt of onshore wind projects, he said, adding this is a market leading position as DNV GL works for a large number of clients in renewable energy projects. DNV GL is also looking at prospects in solar and tidal wave energies in India, Steck added. PTI New York, October 31 Indian-Americans are very concerned about the rhetoric from Donald Trump who has poisoned the political dialogue with his insults to immigrants and women, US House of Representatives contender Raja Krishnamoorthi has said. Krishnamoorthi, 42, is contesting for the 8th Congressional District of Illinois that includes west and northwest Chicago suburbs. He won the Democratic Partys Congressional primary in Illinois in March and has also been endorsed by President Barack Obama. Obama, in a rare video message this week, described Krishnamoorthi as his good friend and called on Americans to vote for him. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Obama said when he had run for the US Senate, Krishnamoorthi had helped him develop ideas for building an economy that works for everyone. Now Rajas plans will help small businesses grow, raise wages, and help families pay for college. Krishnamoorthi said he was honoured to have the support and endorsements of the President as well as those of other bodies and unions. He said the endorsements from the leading Chicago area newspapers that had different perspectives means that we are doing something right. Krishnamoorthis district has a sizable Indian-American population and Krishnamoorthi said the community, in its interaction with him, say they are very concerned about the rhetoric coming from people like Donald Trump who has basically poisoned the political dialogue in this country with his insults to immigrants, people with disabilities, women, other minorities and veterans. People more than ever are yearning for unity in the face of the collective challenges confronting the country. Indian-Americans feel that call to action and call to unity even more keenly, Krishnamoorthi told PTI. Trump says these things in a very cynical way. I personally think that he knows better but he is trying to deliberately appeal to the worst instincts in Americans, he said. Krishnamoorthi emphasised that the only way for people to combat such rhetoric is to become more politically engaged and to vote and express their preferences for the way they believe America should be run through the political process. Now more than ever people have to vote and ensure that November 8 is the day when America decides to go in the direction of unity and collective teamwork in facing the common challenges confronting the country, he said. Krishnamoorthi expressed strong appreciation for the India-US relationship which, he said, had steadily become stronger and deeper. He underscored that a strong relationship between the two democracies is crucial as the world confronted a plethora of challenges. I hope to be a positive force in developing the relationship between the worlds oldest democracy and the world's largest democracy. In an endorsement in June, Obama had said as the son of immigrants who worked their way into the middle-class, Krishnamoorthi understood both the challenges facing Americas working families and the opportunities their work made possible. I know hell fight hard in Congress to create more good jobs, empower more Americans to start businesses, and help working families afford to put their children through college, Obama had said. Krishnamoorthi said, It is so important in the face of the various challenges that the world confronts today, whether its climate change or terrorism or making sure economic gains are broadly shared by working families throughout the world, that America and India form a strong partnership based on democratic principles, respect for human rights and also based on free markets. A son of immigrants, Krishnamoorthi grew up in Illinois and after college and law school, he became policy adviser for Obamas successful US Senate campaign. He also served as a founding prosecutor in Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigans anti-corruption unit. Krishnamoorthi has also received crucial endorsements from influential news outlets such as The Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald and key bodies like Illinois Realtors, Illinois Credit Union League, Human Rights Campaign and International Association of Fire Fighters. We are talking about ideas, we are not talking about insults. We are running a grassroots, ideas-based campaign in the best tradition of American government and politics, he said. Krishnamoorthi, who had fought the elections to enter the US House of Representative in 2012, said the biggest concern facing constituents in his district is how to grow and strengthen the countrys middle class. People ask me how do they send their child to college, will social security and medicare be there for them when they are retired. People are very concerned about gridlock within Washington DC and they want to see people who go there to get things done and who are willing to work with the other side to achieve results, he said. He expressed hope that on November 8, his campaign would be able to make history and go to the Congress. One of the reasons why I have had some success in this campaign so far is that I have talked to people and given them details behind the plan and proposals that I have to tackle the challenges facing the country, Krishnamoorthi said. He said instead of generality or engaging in rhetoric, he could speak in detail about his plans and is in a better position to engage the other side in terms of figuring out the common ground. He urged American voters to go out and exercise their electoral right, saying elections are almost a celebration of democracy. As the old adage goes, if you do not have a seat at the table you are on the menu. It is important for people everywhere to have a seat at the table and have their voices heard, Krishnamoorthi said. He encouraged people to take their children to the polls to develop a new generation of voters. PTI Bhopal, October 31 Eight SIMI activists were killed in what police claim was an encounter on the outskirts of the city hours after they escaped from the high-security Bhopal Central Jail after killing a security guard. Police claim activists of the outlawed Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) killed a security guard and escaped using some bed sheets to scale the jails high walls in the early hours of Monday. Police tracked down the activists in Malikheda, surrounded and killed them, a policeman said. (Read: 4 killed SIMI activists learned bomb-making in UPs Bijnor) Two of the eight had attempted a similar prison break in Khandwa three years ago, DIG Bhopal Raman Singh said. The activists were identified as Amzad, Zakir Hussain Sadiq, Mohammad Salik, Mujeeb Shaikh, Mehbood Guddu, Mohammad Kalid Ahmed, Aqeel and Majid, a police official said. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The National Investigation Agency will take over the case. Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh Government has announced it had suspended four policemen, among them to jails superintendent. However, as hours passed after the incident, contradictions began appearing in the story. IG Yogesh Chaudhary said the fleeing SIMI activists had weapons in their possession and fired when confronted, after which police fired in retaliation comments that appeared to contradict Home Minister Bhupendra Singh, who claimed the undertrials used spoons and plates they carried from the prison to attack the security personnel. "Four firearms and three sharp weapons were recovered from the eight SIMI men were killed in the encounter," Chaudhary said. We are investigating if the men had help from outside to escape. However, television channels showed videos purportedly from the encounter site that showed policeman pumping bullets into the motionless body of a man after an unknown person pulls out what appears to be a knife from a plastic cover and puts it back again. Asked for his comments on the TV footage, the home minister claimed police had no choice but to shoot them. At a brief media interaction, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the NIA would investigate the case but avoided some questions on the encounter. He said the state government would also conduct a separate investigation. "Taking the entire incident seriously, we have taken a decision for a probe by former DGP Nandan Dubey into it," Chouhan told reporters here. A decision will (thereafter) be taken according to the findings. For this criminal negligence, if needed we will dismiss (the official or officials)." "Besides, I had a talk with Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh because these terrorists have links not only in the state but in India and the world," Chouhan said. Soon after the incident, the state government released the sketches of the eight activists and suspended four officials, including Jail Superintendent Akhilesh Tomar. The government also announced a bounty of Rs 5 lakh for each. "We have taken a decision to suspend MP Prison Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Bhopal Central Jail Superintendent, Deputy Jail Superintendent and Assistant Jail Superintendent," Chouhan said. 'No fake encounter' Police staved off criticism of having staged the encounter. "There was heavy firing from the other side (activists) and they were killed in retaliatory fire. Three policemen received injuries from sharp weapons. Police opened 45-46 rounds of fire," IG Chaudhary told the press. The slain activists were dangerous criminals who were involved in the killing of two constables in Khandwa and elsewhere in 2008 and 2011. Besides, three of them were involved in an earlier jailbreak in Khandwa in 2013, Chaudhary said. He however refused to answer several questions saying they were still being investigated. He also said they were investigating the video. Replying to a question about some accounts that said the men were unarmed, he said it would be investigated, although he claimed the men had attacked police personnel and that there even been a scuffle. Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the killing would boost the morale of the nation and assure them that "we are safe and secure". "The news is going to enhance the morale of the nation that we are safe and secure as our security agencies have capacity and capability to beat any challenge," Singh told reporters here. Opposition questions As police prepares to investigate if the men had outside help and their possible international links, opposition parties voiced their doubts over the alleged enounter and demanded a court-monitored inquiry. Senior Congress leader Kamal Nath said: "SIMI activists have escaped from the jail which is a high security prison, and within few hours they have not only been traced but killed. Now they can't be questioned, there is no evidence, their statements cannot be recorded. "I am demanding a judicial probe because even the government must know under what circumstances they escaped." Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh also demanded a judicial probe. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal demanded a Supreme Court-monitored investigation. This is Modi Raj. Fake encountrs, fake cases, Rohith Vemula, KGBansal, missing Najeeb, dalit atrocties, goondaism of ABVP, RSS, gau rakshks Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) October 31, 2016 BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao in turn accused the Congress of "supporting" terrorists belonging to SIMI the way it had done for LeT in the past. "Congress, like they questioned the cross-LoC surgical strike, they are doing the same again for vote bank politics. They are undermining the morale of our security forces," he said. "I cant think of why Congress wants to speak up for such individuals. Politicising the encounter is certainly not a done thing. But Congress party has done this for a long time. "Looking at the way Congress is politicising the encounter, and that too concerning the particular group or organisation, is a matter of concern. Congress seems to raise concern only when LeT terrorists are killed and when SIMI activists who are convicted and involved in jailbreak. Congress party springing to their defence raises curiosity," he said. This is the second major prison break by SIMI activists in three years: seven members of the outlawed group escaped from a jail in Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh in 2013. The Union Home Ministry has sought a detailed report from the state government on the jailbreak to know if there were security lapses. The government banned SIMI in 2001. Agencies Lucknow, October 31 Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav met his expelled uncle Ramgopal Yadav at Saifai village today. The meeting acquires significance in the context of the ongoing family feud in which Ramgopal had to pay heavily for siding with Akhilesh. While both arrived separately on SaturdayAkhilesh from Lucknow and Ramgopal from Delhithey met alone on Diwali and remained huddled together for around 40 minutes. While no official word was available on what transpired during the meeting, it is important as it was the first meeting between the uncle and nephew after party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav summarily expelled Ramgopal on Monday. He was removed from the party for six years on the charge of conniving with the BJP to undermine the SP government. TNS Bhopal, October 31 Head Constable Ramashankar Yadav, who killed by SIMI activists escaping from jail, was a doting father looking forward to his daughters forthcoming wedding. "Ramashankar was happy and excited over his 24-year-old daughter Sonia's wedding scheduled for December 9," his nephew Vijay Shanker Yadav. "My uncle was busy making arrangements for his daughter's marriage. But as fate had it, we got the news of his killing by SIMI men this morning," Vijay said. Ramashankar's two sons Shambhunath (36) and Prabhunath (32) are in the army and are stationed at at Guwahati and Hissar, respectively. While Prabhunath has reached Bhopal, Shambhunath is scheduled to arrive late tonight, he said. "My uncle's body is at morgue after postmortem. His mortal remains will be consigned to flames tomorrow," he added. A pall of gloom has descended on Yadav family after the incident. "We will sit and talk whether to go ahead with the wedding or postpone it," Vijay added. PTI KV Prasad Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 30 Amid tension on the border with Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday saluted the valour of the armed forces and lauded their sacrifice while dedicating the festival of Diwali to them. He hailed the people, including celebrities, for sending overwhelming messages to his Sandesh2Soldiers campaign. In his monthly Mann ki Baat programme on All India Radio, Modi urged all citizens and state governments to find ways of forging unity across the country and working to defeat separatist tendencies and mentalities. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) In the wake of the ongoing troubles in the Kashmir Valley, he said, Unity in diversity is our strength. It is the responsibility of every citizen and all governments to forge unity and curb separatist tendencies to save the country. In an apparent reference to tension on the Indo-Pak border, Modi credited the soldiers for maintaining peace and security in the country and called upon everyone to remember their gallantry while celebrating Diwali. In the wake of recent events, our soldiers have been sacrificing their everything for the safety and security of the country. Their dedication has overwhelmed me completely. Let us dedicate this Diwali to our armed forces. I had invited everyone to participate in the Sandesh2Soldiers campaign and I have been humbled by the response. From students, villagers and traders to political leaders and sportspersons, everyone has sent a Diwali message for our soldiers, he said while referring to the jawans who are stationed in deserts and on the icy heights of the Himalayas and security personnel who are guarding our industries and airports. Our forces endure grave hardships for our security. Someone is stationed in a desert, someone on the Himalayas, someone is guarding our industrial installations and someone is protecting our airports. Everyone is fulfilling a mighty responsibility. If we remember them while being in a festive mood, our remembrance will give them strength and renewed energy. I thank everyone for responding to Sandesh2Soldiers, Modi said in over half-an-hour address on the occasion of Diwali. In a veiled reference to the unrest in Kashmir Valley, the PM also called for forces of unity to be strengthened and those of separatism to be defeated. Unity in diversity is the strength of our country. Every citizen and every government must work to find ways of forging unity and defeating separatist mindset and tendencies, he said as he remembered Sardar Patel who strove hard to forge unity in the country and bind it together. As Modi paid tributes to Sardar Patel whose birth anniversary falls on Monday, he also remembered Indira Gandhi whose death anniversary also falls on the same day. He, however, lamented that on a day we celebrate the birth anniversary of Patel, thousands of Sikhs were killed in 1984 in the wake of the assassination of Gandhi. Reiterating his message of cleanliness on Diwali, Modi said the festival is a marker of swachhta with every family taking it upon themselves to clean their house. The PM, however, said, The call of time is to extend this campaign of cleanliness out of ones house to ones surroundings." The PM also took the occasion to note how the Indian festivals are environment friendly and urged parents to stand with their children as the latter burnt crackers. The Prime Minister also remembered Guru Nanak, the first Sikh Guru, who fought against social evils and discrimination and called for making society free from any kind of discrimination. The Prime Minister also lauded the role played by jawans in natural calamities and said they kept working with patriotic spirit and national interest in mind, be it showing courage in fighting the enemy or in bringing the misguided youth back on track or maintaining law and order. He lauded the efforts taken by Himachal Pradesh in becoming open defecation free and said it is the second state after Sikkim to be so. Modi said Kerala would become open defecation free on November 1 and Gujarat and Haryana were also making efforts in this direction and many districts in these states had already achieved the goal. In making these states defecation free, Modi highlighted the efforts and contribution of many individuals in helping construct toilets. These included those of an ITBP jawan in Himachals Sirmour district who donated Rs 57,000 out of his salary to construct toilets in his village and make it open defecation free, besides those of engineering students in Kerala who helped construct a toilet in Edamalakul of the state. He also praised Haryana, which is celebrating the golden jubilee of its formation on November 1, for taking upon itself to declare the state kerosene-free by linking all LPG beneficiaries with Aadhar card. Some seven or eight districts have already become kerosene-free in Haryana. The way they have taken upon them, I am sure they will succeed and help stop pilferage, save environment and conserve foreign exchange, besides helping the people of the state and putting an end to corruption that middlemen indulged in, he said. Invoking Mahatma Gandhi, whom he described as a guide, Modi said policies should be evolved in such a manner that the poorest of the poor should be kept in mind as the Father of the Nation envisioned. It is the need of the time to address the problems of the poor. We must come out of our orthodox thinking and make society free from any kind of discrimination, he said, while also calling for ending any kind of discrimination towards girls and sought construction of toilets for the girl child too. Wishing countrymen on Diwali, the Prime Minister said India is a country of festivals and today these festivals are celebrated across the world. He highlighted that the US Postal department brought out a postal stamp on this Diwali. Modi said Deepawali gave the message of darkness to light and this darkness included the darkness of superstition, illiteracy, poverty and social evils which should end too. He also recalled that people would celebrate Chhat puja in a few days and the festival carried the message of worshipping the Sun. With PTI New Delhi, October 31 India on Monday continued its discussions with China over the issue of its membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which Beijing has been stalling. Sources here said Amandeep Singh Gill, Joint Secretary (Disarmament & International Security) in the Ministry of External Affairs, held talks with Wang Qun, Director General in the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Beijing over the issue of India's membership in the NSG. Wang leads Chinese delegations in NSG deliberations. The sources said the talks were substantive and constructive and the engagement would continue according to the directive of the leadership of both countries. At the NSG plenary in Seoul in June, China had blocked India's membership on the ground that for a country to become a member of the 48-nation bloc, it has to be a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). On September 13, Gill and Wang started their discussions on the issue in New Delhi. IANS Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 31 India and China today held the second round of talks on Indias membership bid for the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). This is the second time that representatives from both nations have met on the issue since the plenary session of the NSG in Seoul in June at which India failed to gain entry into the grouping. The two representatives had first met here on September 13. Sources in the government here described the talks as being substantive and constructive and said the engagement will continue as per the directive of the leadership. The talks were held in Beijing between Joint Secretary (Disarmament and International Security) Amandeep Singh Gill and Director General of Department of Arms Control Wang Qun. Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 31 In the latest round of India-Russia military talks, New Delhi has told Moscow that it will need more time to examine the proposal to jointly develop the fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGFA). The FGFA, which is under development, is very much a future requirement for the Indian Air Force (IAF) upgrade programme, the Russian side was conveyed last week at a meeting between Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and his Russian counterpart General Sergey Shoigu in New Delhi. We have asked for greater details with regards to the work India will be doing in manufacturing the plane and also technology transfer, a top source in the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. India and Russia have been working to conclude a pending agreement to co-develop the FGFA. New Delhi has told Moscow that it wants a new engine and the plane must have super cruise ability, a 360-degree radar ability, added stealth features among 40-odd other India-specific modifications over the existing prototype. A plane called the T-50 built by the Russians under the PAK-FA (Prospective Airborne Complex of Frontline Aviation) programme as FGFA is already being tested as prototype in Russia. The two countries have to sign a research and development (R&D) contract for the FGFA, but before that the wrinkles have to be ironed out. The signing of a R&D contract has been pending since June 2013 when the preliminary design contract (PDC), which detailed out the fighters configuration, was completed. The PDC cost $295 million (Rs 1,500 crore approximately). The IAF has said AL-41F1 engines being used on the existing T-50 were just upgraded versions of the Sukhoi-30MKIs AL-31FP engines and it would need a new engine. Also, the MoD wants that the R&D contract should have an adequate share of work done in India, thus allowing Indian engineers to learn the art of designing and making a plane. The R&D contract is estimated to be for $4 billion (around Rs 26,000 crore). The R&D process and final development of the plane is expected to be spread across seven years. An aircraft such as the FGFA would be ideal for missions deep into the enemy territory. The IAF is now operating at its lowest combat strength in more than a decade. It is down to 33 squadrons (some 16-18 planes in each) as against a mandated 42 squadrons needed for simultaneous and collusive two-front war scenario with Pakistan and China. New Delhi, October 31 Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday said Vallabhbhai Patels ideology belonged to no particular party as he paid tributes to Indias first home minister to mark his 136th birth anniversary. "No one has copyright over Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. I am from BJP & Sardar Patel was from Cong, but I still follow his ideology & beliefs, which are from no party, Modi said after he inaugurated a digital exhibition dedicated to the leader. We tried our best to portray real and complete life of Sardar Patel here in this exhibition, but it still looks incomplete, Modi said. Sardar Patel did everything for the nation. Whatever he did was devoted to India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday also praised Patel at an event he addressed in the National Stadium earlier in the day. "Today, the country from Kashmir to Kanyakumari is under one flag and the credit for this goes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel," Modi said addressing a gathering at the National Stadium here on the birth anniversary of the country's 'Iron Man'. The Prime Minister said the British, before leaving the country in 1947, had ensured that India splits into small states. "While leaving the country, the British had played politics to divide India into numerous small states, but Sardar Patel made sure that it stayed as one nation," he added. Paid tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel & recalled his contribution in uniting India & strengthening the cooperative movement, Modi said in a Tweet earlier in the day. Earlier in the day, he paid a floral tribute to Patel at his statue in the heart of national capital at Patel Chowk here. Patel was born on October 31, 1875, at Nadiad in Gujarat. The Government last year decided to observe Sardar Patel Jayanti Day as Ekta Diwas. As part of celebrations, various programmes will be organised during the week till November 6, recalling Sardar Patels contribution to unification of India. All Central ministers will visit different parts of the country during the week, garlanding Patel Statutes and holding public meetings. Agencies Mumbai, October 31 Thousands of villagers today bid a tearful adieu to BSF jawan Nitin Subhash Koli, who was killed in ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops in the Macchil sector along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir. Koli was cremated with full military honours at his village Dudhgaon in Sangli district of Western Maharashtra this morning. State ministers Chandrakant Patil and Sadabhau Khot were among those who paid tributes to the martyr. Earlier, his body was taken to his home and later kept at the Karmveer Chowk to enable people pay their last respects. The 28-year-old Koli, who was martyred on October 29, was planning to visit his family in his native village after Diwali. Koli hailed from a farmer family in Dudhgaon village in Miraj tehsil. He is survived by parents Subhash and Suman, younger brother, wife Samapada and two sons - Devraj (4) and Yuvraj (2). He had come home around six months ago and was to come on leave again on November 5. The family was eagerly waiting for him. Before he joined the BSF in 2008, Koli worked as a manual labourer to pay for his education till class XII and also to financially support the family. Recently, he had helped his brother to buy a van so that he could start a small business, a family member said. PTI Nitish announces Rs 11 lakh ex gratia for martyrs family Patna: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on Monday announced Rs 11 lakh ex gratia for the family of soldier Rajiv Kumar Rai killed in Pakistan firing at the Udhampur border in J&K three days ago. He also announced that the soldiers last rites to be performed with full state honours, a statement said here. Rai, a Havildar in 157 Lt AD Regiment (Comp), is a native of Mahua in Vaishali district of Bihar. The CM said the country would always remember his courageous deed and the state was with his family in this hour of grief. PTI R Sedhuraman Legal Correspondent New Delhi, October 31 Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Monday that an "amicable solution" would be found soon to the controversy over the appointment of high court judges. Prasad made the statement while addressing judges and lawyers who had gathered here to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Delhi High Court. The minister's optimism comes two days after a Supreme Court Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) TS Thakur, while hearing two PILs, had taken the government to task for the undue delay in making the appointments on the recommendations of a 5-memebr Supreme Court collegium headed by him. The minister said that at the same time the government was also bound by the judgment of a 5-member Constitution Bench of the apex court for improving the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) to infuse greater transparency and accountability in the appointment of high court and Supreme Court judges. The Bench, headed by Justice JS Khehar, had directed the Centre to revise the MoP while striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act and in the process reviving the Collegium system. "The appointments are being made," Prasad said without specifying if there was any delay in the process. The CJI Bench had directed the government on October 28 to fill up the vacancies of high court judges without awaiting finalisation of a fresh MoP. The minister, however, clarified that the government was committed to upholding judiciary's independence. Among others who addressed the gathering at Vigyan Bhavan were Prime Minister Narendra Modi, CJI Thakur, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi HC Chief Justice G Rohini. Modi, who was the chief guest, highlighted the need for careful drafting of laws to minimise the scope for misinterpretation and avoid discrimination. "Good laws will improve the quality of justice," he said in an apparent allusion to the row over drafting the MoP for appointment of judges. The Prime Minister also called for a debate on the longstanding proposal for creation of an All India Judicial Service (AIJS) on the lines of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) put in place primarily by the first Union Home Minister Sardar Patel, whose anniversary celebrations coincided with that of the Delhi High Court, to promote national unity. Acknowledging that the government, being the biggest litigant, was primarily responsible for clogging the judicial system with more and more cases, the Prime Minister said he had directed the authorities to settle litigation going by the judgments in similar cases instead of taking every dispute to the judiciary. CJI Thakur, who presided over the function, said judges should maintain professional ethics and rectitude to avoid bringing disrepute to judiciary. Kejriwal blamed the Centre for allegedly trying to appoint its own persons as judges and tapping the telephones of judges. Later, Prasad reportedly denied the allegations. New Delhi, October 31 Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday created ripples by alleging that there is a widespread fear that the phones of judges were being tapped and said if it is true, then it is the biggest assault on the independence of the judiciary. Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad promptly denied the allegations, saying the independence of judiciary is fundamental and uncompromising for the Modi government. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Kejriwal claimed during his meetings with judges that he had overheard them telling each other that they should not talk on phones because they could be tapped. The Chief Minister said when he told them that the phones of judges could not be tapped, they retorted by saying that all phones could be tapped. I dont know whether it is true or not but there is a widespread fear. If it is true that phones are tapped then judges can be influenced..., he said. Addressing the golden jubilee celebrations of the Delhi High Court here in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Justice of India TS Thakur also participated, he said even if there had been a wrongdoing by a judge then also phone tapping should not be allowed. There are many other ways to gather evidence for wrongdoing, otherwise it will be the biggest assault on the independence of the judiciary, he said. Prasad, who spoke after Kejriwal, said, I deny with all authority at command the allegations that phones of judges have been tapped. He said right from the prime minister to other ministers and the government, all have fought for the independence of judiciary and individual liberty and freedom of media during emergency. Independence of judiciary is fundamental and uncompromising for the government, he said. Kejriwal also referred to the actions of judiciary as well as the executives which might take away the rights of the people. If any action of the executive snatches the power of the people, if any judicial interpretation of the Constitution takes away power of the people, then it is not good for democracy, he said. PTI Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 31 Two men in a Tata Ace vehicle allegedly tried to abduct a 23-year-old woman from Gobind Nagar here on Sunday night and threw her out some distance away. The woman was rushed to Dayanand Medical College and Hospital where she is said to be normal. She belongs to Faridabad in Haryana. The white-coloured vehicle was recovered by police on Monday and its occupants rounded up. ADCP Crime Balkar Singh said the two men were being interrogated. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Vinod Kumar, an eyewitness, said the incident took place around 1.30 am when he heard noises in his street. He said when he came out to enquire, he saw two men thrashing a woman and later they bundled her into the vehicle. He said they threw her out at Saggu Chowk metres away before fleeing. However, sources said that in the CCTV footage, the woman was seen having an argument with the men after which they snatched her bag. The driver sped off leaving her behind but then suddenly he stopped the vehicle and the woman was seen entering it on her own. Police said further details would be divulged after the interrogation of the two men was completed. Sarbjit Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 31 Even as the state government is holding a mega function in Amritsar to celebrate Punjabi Subas golden jubilee, the key question is: Will Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal ask the NDA government to transfer Chandigarh (as the states capital) and remaining Punjabi-speaking areas to Punjab? Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and BJP president Amit Shah, both confidants of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, are scheduled to attend the event. Modi will be the chief guest at the function being organised in Gurugram by Haryana, which is also celebrating its 50 years after being carved out of Punjab on linguistic lines on November 1, 1966. For the past several decades, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has been blaming successive Congress governments for discriminating against the state on issues such as the transfer of Chandigarh and Punjabi-speaking areas, the control of head works and river waters. Now, with the Akali Dal being a constituent of the NDA government, all eyes are on Badal to ensure that justice is done to the state. It also remains to be seen whether the Prime Minister will touch upon these issues at the Haryana Day function. Tribune News Service Dehradun, October 31 Dehradun district reported the maximum number of emergency cases on Diwali, followed by the Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar districts. Sources at the 108 Emergency Ambulance Service stated that 152 cases were reported from Dehradun, 71 cases were from Haridwar while 64 cases were from Udham Singh Nagar. The 108 Emergency Ambulance Service received a total number of 4,512 calls, out of which 599 were emergency calls, 380 calls were related to medical aid and fire. Also, the maximum number of road accidents was reported from Dehradun. Out of 53 road accidents, 21 road accidents were reported in Dehradun. 12 fire cases reported The state fire service received 12 emergency calls related to minor fire incidents on Diwali here yesterday. Officials said fires were doused and there were no casualties reported in any incident. Minor fire incidents were reported at Mayur Vihar, Sai Lok Colony, SMI hospital, Dharampur, Hanuman chowk, ISBT, Bindal chowki, Chandernagar, Arhat bazaar, Raipur, Brahmin Chowk, and Sahastradhara road. Dhaka, October 31 At least 15 Hindu temples in Bangladesh have been vandalised over an anti-Islamic post on Facebook, sparking panic in the countrys minority community. Temples in Brahmanbarhia district's Nasirnagar were vandalised on Sunday and more than 100 Hindu houses were plundered in mayhem that lasted hours. Two temples in Madhabpur in the neighbouring Habiganj district were also attacked, police and witnesses said. Six people were arrested over the attacks. Paramilitary Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) have been deployed in Nasirnagar and Madhabpur Upazila headquarters along with the Rapid Action Battalion, police and Armed Police Battalion, bdnews24.com reported. The attack was similar to those on the countrys Buddhist community. The latest attack began with a Facebook post by one Rasraj Das from Harinberh village under Haripur Union Parishad, locals said. Das was detained for blasphemy, SP Mizanur said. Protests against the post were called under the banner of 'Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat' in Habiganj district headquarters and Nasirnagar. Demonstrations were also announced in Habiganj's Madhabpur. Hundreds protested against the post. Bangladesh is a predominantly Muslim country. SP Mizanur, quoting witnesses, said a group of the demonstrators, armed with local weapons, vandalised the temples at Duttubarhi, Namashudraparha and Ghoshparha, and Jagannath Temple and Goura Temple. They also vandalised and looted the houses of the Hindu families. Several priests were injured in the attack, he said. Locals say the incidents have sparked fears among the countrys Hindu community. PTI Bartalla, October 31 Iraqi special forces neared the eastern city limits of Mosul today, tightening the noose as the offensive to retake the Islamic State group stronghold entered its third week. Forces from the elite Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) faced mortar fire as they pushed from the Christian town of Bartalla towards Mosuls eastern suburbs, AFP correspondents at the front said. As an aircraft struck a suspected IS mortar position in the distance, a convoy of Humvees sprayed gunfire across the arid plain at an area held by jihadists. Lieutenant Colonel Muntadhar al-Shimmari said CTS had recaptured Bazwaya, one of two IS-held villages that had been standing between Iraqi forces and the eastern edges of Mosul. Tonight, if everything is secured, we will be 700 metres from Mosul, Shimmari said. CTS forces had entered the second village, Gogjali, and were battling to retake it, Staff Lt General Abdelwahab al-Saadi, a senior CTS commander said. He denied reports that Iraqi forces had entered the Al- Karama area - about 2.5 kms from Gogjali - inside Mosul. Backed by air and ground support from a US-led coalition, tens of thousands of Iraqi fighters are converging on Mosul on different fronts, in the countrys biggest military operation in years. AFP EAST OF MOSUL (Iraq), October 31 Iraqi troops entered the Karama district of the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul on Monday, their first advance into the city itself after two weeks of fighting in the surrounding area to dislodge the militants, an officer said. "They have entered Mosul," General Wissam Araji of the US-trained Counter Terrorism Service told Reuters. "They are fighting now in Hay (disrict) al-Karama." The counter-terrorism unit resumed the offensive on the eastern front on Monday. It had paused its advance last week after it made gains quicker than forces on other fronts, to allow them to close the gap and get nearer to the city. Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters started the offensive on October 17, with air and ground support from the US-led coalition against the hardline Sunni group. Pro-Iranian Iraqi Shi'ite militias joined the fighting on Saturday, aiming to cut the route between Mosul and Raqqa, Islamic State's main stronghold in Syria. The battle for Mosul, still home to 1.5 million residents, is shaping up to be one of the toughest in a decade of turmoil following the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003. The CTS will hold its advance in Karama until the forces on the other fronts advance "to protect their back," Araji said in Bazwaia, a village that was retaken from Islamic State earlier in the day, at the edge of the city's eastern suburb. Reuters BELFAST, October 28 Northern Ireland's 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. But it said that it would defer to English courts on the wider issue of whether Prime Minister Theresa May and her ministers have the authority to invoke Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty, the mechanism by which a nation can leave the bloc, without the explicit backing of the British Parliament. The case is the first judgment in legal cases around Brexit that are being closely watched by politicians and markets, including a case in London on whether May has the power to trigger Article 50. 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. Justice Paul Maguire said it was "not viable" that Northern Ireland, where 56 per cent of voters backed remaining in the bloc, should overrule the 52 per cent of the United Kingdom as a whole that voted in favour of leaving. "The UK Parliament has retained to itself the ability to legislate for NI without the need to resort to any special procedure," he said. He said there was nothing in Northern Ireland law that would prevent the prime minister using the "Royal Prerogative" to bypass parliament and trigger Article 50 directly. He said there was no need for Northern Ireland's regional parliament to pass a legislative consent motion before Article 50 is triggered. "Today is a setback but we will see the judges in London," McCord told journalists at the court. "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 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. Reuters Islamabad, October 31 A Pakistan high court today gave permission to opposition politician Imran Khan to hold anti-government protest in the capital on November 2, but warned him against disrupting normal life. Imran-led Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has threatened to shut down the capital Islamabad on Wednesday as part of his push to unseat Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on grounds of alleged corruption linked to the Panama Papers leak. Dismissing the governments challenge to protests, the Islamabad High Court ordered Khan to hold the demonstration at Democracy Park and Speech Corner located near Islamabads Parade Ground. Protest is the fundamental right of every citizens under the law of Pakistan. However, nobody can be compelled, pressured and restrained to do what is not permissible under the law, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddique said in his order. The judge also ordered the administration to act as per law to stop any forced blockade of the capital. If any attempt to block or lockdown the capital is made, the district administration shall act in accordance with law, Justice Siddiqui said. The court also ordered Imran to appear in person and asked the police to make arrangement for his security. However, Imran said he would not attend in person the hearing at the High Court. Agencies Jalalabad (Afghanistan), October 31 A suicide bomber on Monday detonated his explosives in a gathering of tribal elders in eastern Afghanistan, killing at least six people in the latest direct assault on civilians. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, which is a hotbed of Islamic State (IS) jihadists. The blast occurred as tribal elders gathered at the residence of the former district governor to seek aid for war-displaced families, as Afghan forces step up anti-IS operations in the province. "Six civilians were killed and six others were wounded in the suicide attack on a gathering of elders in Jalalabad," provincial spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said. A police spokesman confirmed the toll, adding the wounded had been taken to hospital. Taliban insurgents are active in Nangarhar, but the province also faces an emerging threat from loyalists of the Syria-headquartered Islamic State group, which is making gradual inroads in Afghanistan challenging the Taliban on their own turf. Last week, militants linked to Islamic State jihadists abducted and killed around 30 civilians, including children, in the central province of Ghor, raising concerns about the group's expanding presence beyond its eastern stronghold. AFP The Minister of Local Government.. says when the local government legislation comes into effect.. regional corporations can better service their communities. He made the remark.. during the San Juan Laventille Corporation's interfaith service and military parade.. as the corporation turns 30 years. Foxtel has a Halloween announcement today confirming The Exorcist is coming to Showcase in December. Created by Jeremy Slater (The Lazarus Effect, Fantastic Four), it stars Alfonso Herrera, Ben Daniels and Geena Davis. Sharon Gless also has a recurring role. But the series loosely based on the William Peter Blatty novel and 1973 film of the same name has been held from its September debut in the US. Reviews have been generally favourable. Based on the 1973 horror film, The Exorcist is a propulsive, psychological thriller series following two very different priests tackling one familys case of horrifying demonic possession. Father Tomas Ortega (Alfonso Herrera, Sense8, The Chosen) is the new face of the Catholic Church: progressive, ambitious and compassionate. He runs a small, but loyal, parish in the suburbs of Chicago. He has no idea his quiet life is about to change forever. Deep in the slums of Mexico City, another priest has found himself locked in a life-and-death struggle with evil. Father Marcus Keane (Ben Daniels, Flesh and Bone, House of Cards) is a modern-day Templar Knight, an orphan raised since childhood by the Vatican to wage war against its enemies. Father Marcus is everything Father Tomas is not: relentless, abrasive and utterly consumed by his mission and he constantly butts heads with his adversary within the church, Father Bennett (Kurt Egyiawan, Beasts of No Nation). Caught in the middle of the two priests is the Rance family, who are members of Tomas parish. On the surface, theyre a normal, American family, but all is not as it seems in this household. The patriarch, Henry Rance (Alan Ruck, Spin City, Ferris Buellers Day Off), is recovering from a traumatic injury. Eldest daughter Katherine (Brianne Howey, Scream Queens) has become a recluse who refuses to leave her room. Her younger sister Casey (Hannah Kasulka, The Fosters) thinks shes hearing strange noises coming from inside the walls. And mother Angela (Academy Award and Golden Globe winner Geena Davis, Commander in Chief, Thelma & Louise) believes there is something in the house, a demonic presence, growing stronger by the day. Desperate, she begs Father Tomas for help, unwittingly setting the naive young priest on a collision course with Father Marcus. Separately, each faces an insurmountable task, but together they become the Rances only hope against an evil force that has been mobilising for centuries. The Exorcist is from Morgan Creek Productions in association with 20th Century Fox Television. The series was created by Jeremy Slater (Fantastic Four). The series is executive produced by Slater, Emmy Award nominee Rolin Jones (Friday Night Lights, Weeds), Rupert Wyatt, Roy Lee (Hidden, Run All Night), James Robinson (Dream House), David Robinson (Dream House, The Good Shepherd) and Barbara Wall (Boss). Wyatt also served as director on the pilot. The Exorcist is distributed by 20th Century Fox Television Distribution. 8:30pm Sundays from December 4 on Showcase. What happens to refugee children when their parents die? Tonight on SBS Dateline talks to migrant kids dealing with the daily struggle of survival, including two young siblings living in a derelict petrol station in Greece. They are among tens of thousands of refugee children stranded in Europe without their parents. The last time 13-year-old Mohamed and his 12-year-old sister Nagham saw their father was five years ago. He was taken away at gunpoint by a group fighting in the Syrian conflict, their mother screaming and begging for him to be let go. For Mohamed, his fate of his father is still a mystery; we think about whether they killed him, or whether the regime took him, or whether hes still alive, Two years later the siblings mother was killed in an air strike in the Syrian city of Aleppo, where the family lived. Their home was destroyed. Mohamed and Nagham are no longer in a war zone, but their lives remain dangerous and insecure. Having fled with their aunt and uncle to Europe, surviving a treacherous boat journey on the way, they are now living in an old petrol station in the Northern Greek town of Polykastro. Inside, the building is littered with tents and crowded with other refugee families and children. There are no showers or toilets. Everything changed and we ended up here, says Mohamed, as he plays with his hands. But the petrol station is respite from their previous location a state run camp for refugees where fights regularly broke out. In one scuffle, someone was stabbed. The family attempted to flee the camp shortly after this incident, but were confronted by Greek riot police. Mohamed says he was thrown on the floor and beaten, fracturing his arm. I felt that had we stayed there, we would have all died, he says. I was in a really bad mood and felt I couldnt stand life any more, I still feel the same now. Mohamad and Naghams story is not unique. Of the more than 325,000 migrants that have arrived in Europe by sea through the Mediterranean this year, 28 per cent are children. And of the 169,000 migrants that have arrived in Greece by sea this year, children make up 37 per cent. But many of these arrivals, are now unaccounted for. In January, Europes law enforcement agency Europol estimated that at least 10,000 refugee children are missing since arriving in Europe, and raised concerns that many may have been targeted for sexual or labour exploitation. 9.30pm Tuesday on SBS. 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. In Mariupol direction, the enemy launched 31 attacks on ATO troops. The enemy fired at Marinka (35 km south-west of Donetsk), using small arms, machine guns, and grenade launchers, at Pavlopol (30 km northeast of Mariupol), using 82mm mortars. Ukrainian positions in Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol) were shelled from anti-missile systems, grenade launchers, machine guns, and 120mm mortars," the statement reads. Five more attacks were launched on ATO troops in Luhansk direction. The terrorists fired at Krymske (42.5km north-west of Luhansk), using 82mm mortars, grenade launchers and small arms. Ukrainian positions in Troitske (69km west of Luhansk) came under 120mm mortar fire. Eighteen ceasefire violations by terrorists were recorded in Donetsk direction. The militants shelled at Ukrainian troops in Zaitseve (67km north-north-east of Donetsk), using grenade launchers and small arms. ATO positions near Luhanske (59km north-east of Donetsk) and Novhorodske (34km north of Donetsk) came under heavy machine gun fire. ol The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, the United Nations Organization and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) have signed a Memorandum on mutual understanding and cooperation. The ceremony of signing took place in the Presidential Administration, the presidents press service reports. In particular, the document envisages the creation of a fund that will accumulate funds of international and Ukrainian donors to support projects on Donbas reconstruction. This document is very important as it opens opportunities to significantly speed up the real reconstruction of the liberated territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Also, a procedure established by the fund will be extremely important for helping people after the liberation of occupied Ukrainian territories, presidents envoy to the Verkhovna Rada, MP Artur Herasimov stated, when commenting on the signing of the document. The memorandum was signed by Minister for Temporary Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons Vadym Chernysh, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Ukraine Neal Walker, and World Bank Country Director for Ukraine Satu Kahkonen. iy The Ukrainian gas transmission operator Ukrtransgaz PJSC, the French company Engie and its subsidiary in Ukraine Engie Energy Management Ukraine LLC have signed an agreement related to natural gas transmission and storage within the framework of the French-Ukrainian Business Forum, the Ukrtransgaz press service reports. Engie is one of the largest energy companies in Europe with an annual turnover of about EUR 70 billion, which has become one of the major suppliers of natural gas for Naftogaz of Ukraine NJSC and other Ukrainian traders after Ukraine intensified natural gas deliveries to EU countries, the report states. Having signed the framework agreements, Engie will be able to supply natural gas to Ukraine independently, allowing for further direct sales to Ukrainian traders and consumers. Engie has recently incorporated a subsidiary in Ukraine, aimed at the company's business development on the Ukrainian market. Thanks to Naftogaz reform, we have restored the confidence of Europeans in the Ukrainian market. It is the first company from the European Union, which decided to store natural gas in Ukrainian underground storages, Naftogaz of Ukraine NJSC CEO Andriy Kobolyev said. According to Naftogaz, the French company has already sold 3.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Ukraine. mk Ukraine has fulfilled all 144 requirements needed for the establishment of a visa-free regime with the European Union, President Petro Poroshenko has posted on his Facebook page. Ukraine has fulfilled all 144 requirements on a visa-free regime and has achieved all criteria. I expect that until the EU-Ukraine Summit in Brussels on November 24, Ukrainians will receive a long-waited decision, the recognition of progress and the sign of solidarity, President Poroshenko said. As reported, the EU-Ukraine summit will be held in Brussels on November 24. The sides will discuss the liberalization of a visa-free regime between Ukraine and the EU, the implementation of Minsk agreements, as well as measures being taken on the fight against corruption in Ukraine and a plan of reforms. iy The vote on abolishing visa requirements for Ukrainian citizens has not been put on the draft agenda of the session of the European Parliament to be held in Strasbourg on November 21-24. This is evidenced by the European Parliaments draft agenda of the forthcoming session published on its website. As reported, the European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs supported a draft resolution on amending a list of third countries, whose nationals are exempt from visa requirements when traveling to EU states for a short stay (apart from the Great Britain and Ireland) and to the Schengen area. At the same time, the EU has not started the next procedure on adopting this decision trilateral interinstitutional talks between the EU Council, European Parliament and European Commission. Also, the EU noted that Ukraine fulfilled all requirements needed to waive a visa-regime with the EU. iy Only 10% out of nearly 700,000 children with disabilities in Ukraine get education now. Maryna Poroshenko, the wife of the President of Ukraine, said this at todays conference on the system of inclusive education held in Kyiv. "About 700,000 children with mental and physical disabilities live in Ukraine now. Of them, only 10% have the opportunity to study. And we can imagine the fate of children beyond this 10%. As of now, we have only 2,720 classes with inclusive education across entire Ukraine. This is a very low figure," Maryna Poroshenko stressed. At the same time, she recalled that the team of the Poroshenko Charity Foundation had been systematically engaged in introducing the inclusive environment in Ukraine. ol facebook like button Tweet tweet button for twitter Published October 31, 2016 MONROE, La. The University of Louisiana Monroes Concert Choir will tour several Louisiana high schools Nov. 1 3 as part of the annual fall recruiting tour. The choir will perform at six high schools in a three-day period. Members of the choir will also serve as recruiters, providing high school students with first-hand information about ULM and its programs. Dr. Deborah Chandler, director of choral activities, believes the best way to recruit is to let the students do it. We dont just recruit choir people and musicians. Well over three quarters of our choir members are non-music majors, so we represent the whole university, Chandler said. Chandler says the fall recruiting tours, organized for the past 13 years, are much-loved and highly anticipated by the choir members who, in addition to representing their university, also get to have fun. Everything is paid for, they stay in a nice hotel, they have the opportunity to sing and socializeits just a lot of fun, Chandler said. The choir members highly value the opportunity given to tour, which they demonstrate through their effort in making these performances informative, engaging, and interactive. We interact with the students on-site, answering questions ranging from admissions to graduation, Chandler said. Chandler compares her recruiting experience to sales, saying its easy for her to do it because she sells a product she believes in and all she has to do is tell the truth about ULM. When I came here in 2004, I thought I would stay for a couple of years and then move on to somewhere else. Well, this is my 13th year, and Ive stayed because I stay motivated due to these great students. We have wonderful faculty, we are very well supported by the administration, we are still doing good music, and we are still doing a good work, said Chandler. We are the best kept secret around. The ULM Choir has 60 members. For most of them, the tour will end in Slidell on November 3. However, 12 students followed by Chandler will travel to New Orleans as a part of the Louisiana Collegiate Honor Choir. This performance is scheduled for Friday 7 p.m. at St. Louis Cathedral. Daily schedule of the tour: Tuesday, November 1: The tour starts at West Monroe High School, where the choir will perform at 9:50 a.m. The choir then travels to Ruston, with two performances held at Ruston High School at 11:15 a.m. and then again at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 2: The tour continues at Pineville High School with a performance scheduled for 8:15 a.m. The choir will then travel to Mansura to perform in front of the students of Avoyelles Charter High School at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, November 3: The choir will perform at Destrehan High School beginning at 9 a.m. The tour ends in Slidell, with the choirs performance held at Northshore High School at 12:15 p.m. New regulations on student loans have been finalized and issued by the government on Friday, in order to make it easier for the students to get their debts forgiven in instances when their schools have committed misconduct and fraud. These new laws by the Obama administration target to make a difference in the system so that the loans will be erased if a school has used illegal methods and tactics to influence the students to borrow money to be able to get a higher education. "To protect students from the start, the regulations seek to deter institutions from engaging in predatory behavior or otherwise exposing the government to risk," Under Secretary of Education Ted Mitchell said in a statement. "For students who are injured by an institution's conduct, these regulations provide a clear path to relief with all of their rights intact, and restore their right to sue." The schools who also force the students to agree that they will not sue over misconduct will be banned. "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. These new rules also paved the way for a new process that will enable the Department of Education to be able to forgive the debts of those who did not even apply for loan forgiveness during the instances when there is a widespread of misconduct. The proposal of these new regulations have been labelled as imbalanced by the for-profit colleges and said that it will shut down their industry. Under the Obama administration, there has already been $247 million worth of loans cleared with more than 15,000 student claims of misconduct approved. Hillary Clinton does not believe in giving free education for everyone. Subsidized state scholarships should only be availed by those who have no means to support themselves. She is talking about an education reform that can make schools, colleges, and universities become affordable world-class institutions. This issue is in time with American families' greatest burden - the all-time high cost of education that caused many citizens to be indebted. Hillary Clinton insisted that it is necessary to invest in one's child because it is like investing in the country's bright future. President Barrack Obama, on the other hand, campaigned with Hillary Clinton in Charlotte and happily approved of her debt-free college system - which he himself proposed something like a two-year community college free of charge for all but it defaced until Clinton revived it. Area-wise scenario, when the Democrats already reign, its economic reform principles will be reflected in the areas they dominate. Like for instance in Colorado where a total landslide can be predicted in Senate, House and the governor's office, the Colorado Education Association must carry out the pledges during the election, as implied by Ed Excellence. The Republicans who are not into Donald Trump can end up deciding not to vote, thus making a sure victory for democratic candidates in various positions, aside from Hillary Clinton. Since the Democrats are particular with standards, robust educational reforms will be initially carried out in their bailiwicks. This started from a piecemeal student loan reform from two years ago to a massive debt-free higher education plan. It included tuition-free deals with state colleges and universities for at least 83 percent of the families in the U.S., says Washington Times Hillary Clinton indicates that she will opt for an executive power to disable student loan repayments for at least a quarter. That shall give enough time for the federal education department to negotiate with borrowers on how to make the repayment system easier for families. Freida Pinto is a famous Indian actress. She mostly appears in British and American movies. Although born and raised in Mumbai, India, she decided that she would become an actress at a young age. Now, she is using her voice to fight for one of the most fundamental human rights that should be available for women. Women around the world are being denied of education. And Freida Pinto is campaigning for change. She sets of to empower women as an ambassador of "Girl Rising," cites E Online. She knows what it is like to be treated unfairly and unequally. During her childhood years in India, sh e saw how women were being treated. She opens up about her experiences. Pinto explains that her mother was a principal in a school and her grandmother is a teacher. Which is why, according to her, her upbringing was shaped by how important education is for children everywhere. Freida Pinto says she never aspired to become a teacher like her mother or grandmother. But what she saw hits home. She knew that living in India means girls are going to be treated unfairly. And as she continues to become aware of what is happening in India, she finds the disparaging differences. Girls are begging in the streets just to bring in enough money for their family. She calls the situation sad. Now, she s fighting for this right to education. She joins Selena Gomez, Anne Hathaway, Chloe Grace Moretz, Alicia Keys and more actresses to campaign for "Girl Rising." This documentary focuses on the women that overcame challenges around the world. Pinto explains that the film aims to raise awareness about the issues that girls face everywhere. She hopes that girls who see this movie will encourage girls to become more confident when they see that they can overcome their struggles. For Freida, it is important to convey these stories of women to inspire all girls. Jake Millar is only 21 years old. This professional from New Zealand sits down to discuss about his current project. Millar grew up with a family that was always into business. His dad operated a skydiving company. Earlier on, he was already exposed to business. In high school, he busied himself with opening up his first company called OOMPHER. By nineteen years old, he sold OOMPHER to the New Zealand government. In addition to his entrepreneurial skills, he studied law, cites Forbes. But he did not stop at OOMPHER. He founded Unfiltered. Unfiltered is a company that interviews the most prominent entrepreneurial leaders in the world. To date, he has over 200 videos and each videos talk about specific education topics. Unfiltered's subscribers can gain access to his interviews with Tesla's Ian Wright, Richard Branson and more. Now, he plans to bring Unfiltered to the United States. Unfiltered happened when he was a contractor for his first company. He calls the experience fun. Unfiltered targets everyone who wants to learn about entrepreneurial skills and businesses. It is available for anyone who wants to subscribe to the website. He lists down companies that subscribe to the website as well like the Bank of New Zealand, PwC and more. He calls his company a learning and development tool. He understands that when it comes to business, the speed is quite fast. And technology plays a huge part for businesses everywhere. Jake Millar uses Uber as an example. He explains that the company underwent digital disruption and PwC's employees are learning from that. For entrepreneur Jake Millar, education is not only limited to schools but through other people's experiences. Next year, he is launching his business in Australia in July. His plan to bring Unfiltered to the United States means he will be interviewing entrepreneurs from the U.S for the American people. Hanna Grol-Prokopczyk, the assistant professor of sociology in the University at Buffalo, explains that schools and academics often mock celebrity news. But Hanna points to a study that indicates celebrity culture as a great influence to people. It is considered as a huge influence when it comes to social norms. And if used wisely, it can reach far and wide, according to Buffalo. The study saw the history for the past forty years when it comes to celebrity news. They found that these news seem to have made contributions to the changes in the traditional nuclear American family. In the report, it helps destigmatize out of wedlock child birthds in the country. Grol-Prokopczyk explains that average Americans used to be embarrassed about having someone in the family pregnant and not married. But celebrities are not even apologizing for their pregnancies. Grol-Prokopczyk adds that the American family model has changed. The previous model encourages women to marry by the time the child is born. In the years of 2000, the model shifted. Celebrities are now having a kid even without marriage. And most celebrity couples often have a baby prior to getting married. Grol-Prokopczyk uses People Magazine as her source of celebrity news. She considers it to be a reputable source as the publication does not publish fictional covers. She saw the past 400 cover stories of People Magazine. Her analysis saw the evolution of celebrity pregnancies. According to the University at Buffalo sociologist, celebrity news can act as an agent for social change when it comes to out of marriage child birth. She uses Angleina Jolie as an example. When the actress confessed to having a preventative mastectomy, the Angelina Effect happened. Which meant 74% of Americans knew about it. This effect was even published in the journal Genetics in Medicine. Celebrity news can also act as an agent for social change when it comes to de-stigmatizing transgenderism. The upcoming Galaxy S8 is rumored to run Android 7.1 Nougat; however, Samsung has hinted about the rolling out of Android 7.0 or Nougat to 20 of its handsets before the year ends, including the flagship smartphone Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge. See the full list of devices here! Android 7.0 Nougat for Samsung Galaxy Models Just recently, Samsung is reported to be rolling out Android 7.0 Nougat to 20 of its handsets before the year ends. Root Update provided the list of Samsung Galaxy models that are about to receive the latest mobile operating updates. Alongside the flagship smartphone Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge, the following Samsung Galaxy models are believed to receive the latest patch of android in December: S6, S6 EDGE, Note 5, Note 4, Note 3, Note 1, S4, S3, Grand Prime, S2, Ace 3, S5, A5, A8, Alpha, J7 and J5. Android 7.1 Nougat for Samsung Galaxy S8 Although others may claim that the upcoming Galaxy S8 has been damaged by the Galaxy Note 7 just before it's released to the public, Samsung's new flagship smartphone seems to be shaping up to pick up where the Note 7 left. According to Android Authority, Galaxy S8 will feature an improved camera, best artificial intelligence services, 6GB of RAM packed in a slicker body and a full-screen 4k display. On the other hand, the Galaxy S8 is said to compete with Google Pixel phones thus, it is presumed that the next flagship will run Android 7.1 Nougat. According to unverified rumors, it is also likely for Galaxy S8 to have Android 7.0 Nougat pre-installed during purchase. None of these rumors have been confirmed directly by Samsung except on the phone's launching date. According to Android Authority, Samsung might launched Galaxy S8 in 2017 during the Mobile World Congress in February in contrast to the early release date issues pointing to December of this year. The SF-Qualiveen is a short questionnaire that measures the impact of urinary symptoms on the quality of life of patients with urological dysfunction due to neurological disorders. The aim of this study is to translate, culturally adapt and validate a Dutch version of the SF-Qualiveen for use in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients. Cross-cultural adaptation of the original English SF-Qualiveen into Dutch was performed according to standardized guidelines. Adult MS patients with symptomatic urinary disorders who visited the Urology or Rehabilitation outpatient clinic of the Erasmus Medical Center completed the SF-Qualiveen and the Urinary Distress Inventory-6 (UDI-6), that evaluates bother caused by lower urinary tract symptoms and was used as a gold standard, at baseline and 1-2 weeks later. A control group recruited from the Otolaryngology outpatient clinic completed the questionnaires once. Reliability and validity were determined. Fifty MS patients and 50 controls were included. SF-Qualiveen scores in patients were higher than in controls (on a scale of 0-4: 1.73 vs. 0.34; P < 0.001). Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha >0.8) and reproducibility (Intraclass correlation coefficients >0.8) were good for the total SF-Qualiveen. Content validity was adequate and a significant relationship between SF-Qualiveen and UDI-6 (r = 0.510-0.479, P < 0.001) confirmed good criterion validity. The Dutch SF-Qualiveen showed good measurement properties. We recommend its use to measure urinary-specific quality of life in MS patients in research and clinical practice in the Netherlands. Neurourology and urodynamics. 2016 Oct 29 [Epub ahead of print] Sarah H M Reuvers, Ida J Korfage, Jeroen R Scheepe, Bertil F M Blok Department of Urology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. ., Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands., Department of Urology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27794179 The field of sexual medicine is continuously advancing, with novel outcomes reported on a regular basis. Given the rapid evolution, updated guidelines are essential to inform practicing clinicians on best practices. To summarize the current literature and provide clinical guidelines on penile traction therapy, vacuum erection devices, and penile revascularization. A consensus panel was held with leading sexual medicine experts during the 2015 International Consultation on Sexual Medicine (ICSM). Relevant literature was reviewed and graded based on Oxford criteria to develop evidence-based guideline and consensus statements. The development of clinically relevant guidelines. Penile traction therapy is a viable therapy to modestly improve penile length as a primary therapy, before penile prosthesis placement in men with decreased penile length or after surgery for Peyronie's disease. It also might have a role in the acute phase of Peyronie's disease but has inconsistent outcomes in the long-term phase. Vacuum erection devices are effective in creating an erection satisfactory for intercourse, even in difficult-to-treat populations. They also might be used in the post-prostatectomy setting to maintain penile length but have insufficient evidence as a penile rehabilitation therapy. For vasculogenic erectile dysfunction, men with suspected arterial insufficiency can be evaluated with penile Duplex Doppler ultrasonography and confirmatory angiography. Penile revascularization procedures have consistently demonstrated benefits in very select patient populations; however, inadequate data exists to suggest the superiority of one technique. Men with vascular risk factors are likely poor candidates for penile revascularization, although veno-occlusive dysfunction and age are less significant. Therapies for treating primary veno-occlusive dysfunction are not recommended and should be reserved for clinical trials. Since the prior ICSM meeting, multiple developments have occurred in external mechanical devices and penile revascularization for the treatment of erectile and sexual dysfunction. Sexual medicine clinicians are encouraged to review and incorporate recommendations as applicable to their scope of practice. The journal of sexual medicine. 2016 Nov [Epub] Landon W Trost, Ricardo Munarriz, Run Wang, Allen Morey, Laurence Levine Department of Urology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA. Electronic address: ., Center for Sexual Medicine, Department of Urology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA., Department of Urology, University of Texas-Houston Medical School, Houston, TX, USA., Department of Urology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA., Department of Urology, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA. PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27770853 Published: October 31, 2016 UTs PNC Bank Concert Artist Series Continues Nov. 13 with Haig Mardirosian On Sunday, Nov. 13, organist Haig Mardirosian will celebrate 50 years as a recitalist with a performance in The University of Tampas PNC Bank Concert Artist Series in the Sykes Chapel and Center for Faith and Values. The concert begins at 2 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Since his debut in Baltimore on Nov. 13, 1966, Mardirosian has played hundreds of recitals, concertos and collaborative concerts in his half-century of performing. He has been called upon to perform in international festivals in Europe and as a dedicatory recitalist for new instruments. Critical acclaim of his performances has come from all quarters. The Rochester (NY) Democrat and Chronicle said Mardirosian has outstanding musicianship and virtuosity ... He admirably expressed color, motion and human perspective in musical terms and the American Record Guide said of his recorded work, In our present day and age, much more such splendid organ playing is needed! This very special program includes collaborations with violinist Lucas Guideri and a choir of womens voices conducted by Rodney Shores in music by Jeanne Demessieux, J.S. Bach, Maurice Durufle, John Ireland and Sigfrid Karg-Elert. The concert is free, but seating is limited. Doors open 30 minutes before the performance. Parking is available on campus. The 2016-2017 PNC Bank Concert Artist Series is underwritten by PNC Bank and the UT College of Arts and Letters. For more information, contact caldean@ut.edu or go to www.ut.edu/sykeschapel. New UTSA study shows how the U.S. can avoid a debt disaster (Oct. 31, 2016) -- A new study by John Merrifield, professor of economics at The University of Texas at San Antonio, describes a way for the United States to curb its spending and stop the growth of the astronomical national debt, which is now close to $20 trillion. According to Merrifield, the country could be headed for disaster if it doesnt start taking its spending problem seriously. We need to find a way to have less debt thats politically feasible, Merrifield said. Thats obvious. But how do you make it politically palatable to somehow restrain spending? Cutting spending is unpopular on both sides of the aisle for a number of reasons, but the most common excuse is that the government needs to be able to spend without limits in the case of a disaster. To eliminate that excuse, Merrifield and his co-author, Barry W. Poulson, retired professor of economics at the University of Colorado, have adapted Swiss and Swedish spending policies. One of these adaptations includes an emergency fund to cover the recovery costs of a natural disaster or terrorist attack. Things happen and we cant foretell reasons to spend, so we need to eliminate the political cover of people who want to keep spending, Merrifield said. The next step is a cap on spending, which is more difficult to make happen. The inherent bias in government is to take a few dollars from a lot of people and focus those dollars on a smaller number of people in order to obtain their votes, he said. This tempts politicians to spend more and more money. Essentially, a politician maintains their home support by showing themselves as effective representatives who bring home the bacon for their districts. Cutting spending is unpopular because when a program gets cut, constituents are more likely to feel that pinch rather than notice any small savings come tax season. However, Merrifield insists this is necessary to get the national debt under control. Weve gotten ourselves into a pretty bad fix, he said. If we had adopted these measures in 1994, today our national debt would be half of what it is now. However, if Merrifield and Poulsons measures were adopted tomorrow, the debt would only be reduced by about 10% in 10 years, as a result of 20 years of reckless spending. Even if we restrict our rate of growth of spending, its going to be a lot harder to move forward, Merrifield said. The longer we wait to do something, the harder its going to be to make much progress. He and Poulson are set to meet with representatives from lawmakers and think tanks in Washington, D.C. in mid-November to discuss their findings and possible solutions to the problem. Its caught some peoples attention, Merrifield said. Now, the hard part is getting people to vote for it. ------------------------------- Read John Merrifields study, Swedish and Swiss Fiscal-Rule Outcomes Contain Key Lessons for the United States. Learn more about the UTSA Department of Economics. Connect online at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. UW Professors Essay Named Top Publication by National Journal Susan Dewey A University of Wyoming associate professors research work in the New Orleans criminal justice system that forced persons convicted of certain prostitution offenses to register as sex offenders under an antiquated (1805) statute was named the top essay by a national journal. Susan Dewey, in the UW Gender and Womens Studies Program, received the Best Article Award by Feminist Criminology for her essay, titled Sex Workers/Sex Offenders: Exclusionary Criminal Justice Practices in New Orleans. She wrote the essay with Tonia St. Germain, a former UW adjunct professor. Feminist Criminology, published quarterly, is an innovative journal dedicated to research related to women, girls and crime within the context of a feminist critique of criminology. It is the official journal of the Division on Women and Crime of the American Society of Criminology. The journal awards just one Best Article Award each year. In Deweys essay, she cites the New Orleans law that was enforced until 2012. Her article explores attitudes and beliefs that enabled Louisianas system to misuse the sex offender registry, targeting certain groups of individuals. The article draws on findings from a mixed methods study to analyze the means by which the New Orleans criminal justice system employed Louisianas arcane Crime Against Nature by Solicitation (CANS) statute to convict sex workers and consequently force them to register as sex offenders, Dewey says. She examines how CANS application disproportionately affected African-American women and transgender individuals, leading the Louisiana Supreme Court, in 2012, to deem the law unconstitutional and, in 2013, to mandate the removal of convicted sex workers names from the sex offender registry. Its very nice to be acknowledged for conducting practical work that helps lead to policy change, Dewey says. Whether as a researcher, as the admissions coordinator at a Denver womens transitional housing facility or in the classroom, I strive to conduct work that improves, on their own terms, the lives of women struggling with addiction and criminal justice system involvement. Dewey, who has been at UW since 2010, received a B.A. (1999) from Stony Brook University, and an M.A. (2002) and a Ph.D. (2004) in anthropology, both from Syracuse University. She has written nine books; the most recent is the forthcoming from New York University Press, titled Women of the Street: How the Criminal Justice-Social Services Alliance Fails Women in Prostitution. For more information, call Dewey at (307) 766-3427 or email sdewey3@uwyo.edu. Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. South Korea's semi-official Yonhap news agency releases that during the evening protest, the police estimated that almost 12,000 demonstrators had attended the said protest. Just recently, South Korea's President Park Geun-Hye has faced a state inquiry after allegedly disclosing several state documents to a friend. As this political chaos continued to affect the whole country, Park Geun-Hye ordered the resignation of 10 of her senior secretaries on Friday. Presidential Spokesman Jung Youn-kuk told the CNN that the president will carry out reshuffling the Office of the President in the near future. Basically, senior secretaries are those who coordinate policy between the president herself and the government ministries. According to the Presidential Office's website, the senior secretaries to the president for policy coordination, political affairs, civil affairs, foreign affairs and national security, public relations, economic affairs, future strategy, education and culture, employment and welfare and personnel affairs, are among those who were ordered to resign immediately. On Tuesday, Park Geun-Hye had confessed that she indeed shared several state documents to one Choi Soon-sil. Park claimed that Choi, who does not hold any public office, offered "her personal opinion" in connection to the president's official public speeches prior to the 2012 presidential elections. Park, in her televised presidential apology, said that Choi looked at "some documents" for a certain period of time after the president took office. However, she did not specify those documents were. During the live telecast, Park said: "I am shocked and my heart is breaking for causing public concern. I've done so (shared the documents) out of pure heart so that I could carefully review (the documents)." Earlier this week, JTBC, CNN's South Korean affiliate, released the news after it revealed the discovery of Choi's abandoned computer which contains reliable evidences that she in fact received several state documents, and even got involved in state affairs. On Thursday, the South Korean prosecutor's office already formed a "special investigation unit" to look after the cases. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has launched a new regulatory that prevents the immigrants and asylum-seekers who travel by boat to settle into the country. This declaration was made three years after the Turnbull guaranteed to disallow the access and settlement of the refugees to Australia who travelled by the sea. Turnbull's announcement has been tagged as a "severe and entirely unnecessary step" by a humanitarian group. Turnbull, in his press conference on Sunday, was certain to send an "absolutely unflinching, unequivocal message" through the proposal of a prohibition on settlements of refugees arriving by a boat. Turnbull claimed that the law is a mean to be fairer to those immigrants who undergoes the legal process of visa application. He said, "A generous humanitarian program, a harmonious multicultural society, depends on the Australian government being in control of its borders. And it depends on us sending a united and concerted answer to the people smugglers that if they seek to bring people to Australia, those passengers will never settle in this country." The Prime Minister claimed that Australia has already accommodated thousands of refugees. He even said that the bill would concern the asylum seekers who are taken to a regional processing facility in Nauru or Papua New Guinea since July 19, 2013. Minor asylum seekers or those who are under the age of 18 who tried to come to Australia through the sea would not be liable for the regulatory. To establish that they will not be settling in Australia for long, immigrants who arrive in Australia by the sea were transferred to offshore centers in small Pacific nations including Nauru and Manus Island in Papua New Guinea since the year 2012. Despite several reports of violence in Australia's offshore camps, the former leaders of the country have labeled the law as essential in order to stop people from drowning at the sea. The head of the opposition and Labor Leader Bill Shorted was advised by Turnbull to support the bill since it is "entirely consistent with his party's public stated position". According to Amy Lamoin, the head of policy and advocacy for UNICEF Australia, Turnbull's regulatory proposal is "not a reasonable, necessary or proportionate measure" and one that "squarely punishes refugees more than it creates a credible warning to people smugglers." "It is difficult to see that the lifetime ban has a legitimate aim," Lamoin said. French Montana took over TAO Nightclub in The Venetian on the Saturday of Halloween weekend as part of his exclusive residency with TAO Group (Photo credit: Al Powers). Photo credit: Al Powers. The rapper fueled up at the restaurant with friends where they had the satay of sea bass and orange chicken before heading upstairs to the nightclub. Upon arrival, French Montana took to the stage, sending the crowd into a frenzy as he performed a set of his top hits for party-goers. Photo credit: Al Powers. Also at TAO was Dan Bilzerian who enjoyed dinner with friends at the restaurant before heading up to the nightclub to take in French Montanas performance. Halloween weekend is always a whos who at Fright Dome with many celebs and special guests stopping by for an annual visit to the top-ranked attraction to kick off their Halloween celebrations (Pictured: UFC visitors Dana White and Matt Hughes pose with Fright Dome owner Jason Egan (Arch Bishop) and his girlfriend Cheyenne Ruether (nun). Kicking off the weekend was the first ever Fright Dome wedding! Fright Dome owner Jason Egan presided over the darkly themed wedding dressed as a twisted Arch Bishop while girlfriend Cheyenne Ruether assisted in his officiating dressed as a ghostly nun. Guests included a 9ft python, ominous Fright Dome half-girl as the ring bearer, DC characters and more! Rounding out the spooky fun, UFCs Dana White, Matt Hughes and family members made their annual visit. White, Hughes and their group visited all six haunted houses with Egan, with Ouija as their standout favorite. White was overheard telling Egan that the solo house Ouija was the best hed ever been to in his life. The group finished out their visit by riding the roller coasters, Disko, and Inverter. But to make or extract those materials or fuels is not an easy process. It has an impact on the environment and on air quality that needs to be minimised. For decades now, GE Steam Power Systems has been leading the charge within the industry to improve air quality. Today, the company remains at the forefront of these efforts to reduce air pollution, helping customers around the world clean up the emissions they generate through their energy generation or industrial processes. To date, the company has installed air quality control systems in power and industrial plants across the globe that collectively account for around 500 gigawatts of output, removing countless pollutants and harmful substances from the air we all breathe. The historic contribution GEs technology has made to cleaning up our air is incalculable but it is the companys latest solutions that have the potential to be a game changer in the battle against air pollution. The digital systems of the future are in pilot stage now at plants in Northern Europe Long term commitment Drawing on a host of advanced tools, from dry and wet flue gas desulfurisation (FGD) technology to particulate control systems (electrostatic precipitators and fabric filters) and selective catalytic reduction systems (SCR), GE Steam Power Systems is now able to deploy solutions that remove up to 99 per cent of particulate matter, 98 per cent of sulphur oxide (SOx), 95 per cent of nitrogen oxide (NOx), and 92 per cent of mercury and other pollutants from power and industrial plant emissions. These impressive removal rates are a testament to GEs long-standing commitment to innovation, and have only been made possible through its continuous investment in research and development of the most effective and efficient technology. The company currently earmarks between 4 and 5 per cent of its annual revenues for R&D activity and has thus, over the course of many years, invested millions of dollars into pioneering new technologies that capture hazardous pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. Global expertise In terms of human resources, GE employs more than 1,000 experts who focus solely on advancing a range of clean air and environmental initiatives. We have established four state-of-the-art centres of technological development around the world, and each works towards the same goal of enabling our customers to meet the strictest environmental regulations at the lowest cost, said Fernando Bertoni, head of Environmental Control Solutions at GE Steam Power Systems. The dry FGD and particulate matter systems are developed and tested in Vaxjo, Sweden, the wet flue gas technology is nurtured and developed just outside Milan, Italy, and the SCR technology is in the US-state of Tennessee, so this truly is a large, global effort to tackle a global problem. The other centre, which specialises in seawater FGD systems, is located in Beijing, China, a city that has often been the scene of air quality alerts, and whose inhabitants understand only too well the urgency of dealing with contaminated air. The seawater FGD technology that GE has been developing for over 40 years is supplied to power plants and industrial facilities located in coastal areas around the world, including in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. It works by taking seawater and using it as a reagent to absorb sulphur dioxide emissions. A pulse-jet fabric filter system then helps to keep particulate emissions at the plant below 50 milligrammes per cubic metre (mg/Nm3). GE air quality control systems can be used by many power plants and industries The multiple air quality control systems that GE is able to offer its customers can be applied across a wide range of power plants and industries that rely on different types of fuel and have different capacities. They can be used in all kinds of fossil-fuel powered plants, for example, as well as in waste-to-energy, aluminum, cement, oil and gas, steel, and pulp and paper facilities. Moreover, the systems can also be installed in new builds or retrofitted into existing units, with GE able to provide various offerings from a single component to a complete system to help customers apply the best solution to reduce emissions and comply with increasingly tough restrictions. Running on GE technology, Germanys RDK8 power station is the worlds most efficient coal-fired steam power plant Solutions for all types of machinery and equipment GE can also service and upgrade equipment supplied by other original equipment manufacturers (oOEM), with solutions including planning and installation, maintenance and repairs, advanced technology upgrades, outcome-based service agreements, scalable plant-level solutions and plant recommissioning/relocations. Customers find this capability helpful, as well as GEs ability to work across the full balance of a plant and not just on its air quality control systems. When it comes to optimising the performance and long-term value of your steam power plant, imagine having the support- and continuity- of a single service provider that understands the full plant-as-a-system impact for all your installation, maintenance, repair and upgrade activities, while in harmony with emission control standards. You can fully harness the synergies within all the interconnected systems across your operations, said Anders Maltesen, region general manager, Power Services, Asia Pacific. Driven by more than 230 years of power generation services experience- the Power Services portfolio stretches across the horizon of total power plant capabilities, GEs Power Services business has the flexibility to solve any combination of needs- and support any asset mix- throughout your plants life cycle, he added. In the context where air quality regulations are constantly evolving and becoming ever more stringent, the fact that the companys technology not only allows operators to comply with environmental legislation but go beyond what regulators ask is vitally important for customers. It means operators have the flexibility to operate with stricter regulations in the future, which might otherwise have forced them to introduce costly new systems, implement expensive upgrades or shut down their facilities. Reducing power consumption Finding new ways to reduce the amount of power used by its solutions is another important focus area for GE. Reducing power consumption in this way not only produces environmental benefits - as less fuel is needed to power the system - but also generates significant financial savings for the operator. These economic gains are one reason why it is cost-effective to invest in the technology in the first place. Another reason why companies are investing in the technology is that, amid growing corporate sensitivity for lower environmental footprints, companies have been encouraged to focus on the outcome of their production. Operators also want to comply with regulations, causing them to seek out the best solutions available. Those systems, Bertoni contended, are presently made by GE, and they will assuredly improve in the years ahead, as the company begins to integrate its market-leading air quality technology with its cutting-edge digital capabilities. Digital Industrial solutions make a difference GE Steam Power Systems has embraced the digital transformation, working on two pilot projects - one at a small waste-to-energy plant in Norway and another at a steam power plant in Northern Europe - where it is collecting data from its air quality control systems and transporting it to the a secure, cloud-based environment for analysis using Predix, the operating system for the Industrial Internet. The objective is to find ways of optimising overall system performance by crunching the data and predicting future plant performance so that even more pollutants can be removed from plant emissions, more efficiently and at lower cost. The digital technologies developed by GE at its testing centre in Sweden are being employed to allow operators to monitor their emissions live, in real-time. With GEs advanced controls and cyber security software, the digital power plant (DPP) for steam interprets data drawn from sensors across the power plant, highlighting key factors affecting performance (fuel quality, plant aging and external conditions), then taking appropriate action through a closed loop control system. Real-time monitoring of these factors is important when steam plants are used as a source of ancillary power, requiring them to ramp-up generation faster and more often than theyre designed to do. Without effective monitoring and control of key plant processes, fuel consumption may be inefficient, emissions may increase, and equipment life may be impacted. GEs DPP software can enhance the performance and reduce emissions of almost all steam plants including non-GE and legacy Alstom plants commissioned in the past 25 years by contributing up to 1.5 per cent efficiency over the life of a plant, helping to maintain peak efficiency for longer periods of time. This is a really exciting development and key to developing optimisation solutions,said Bertoni, Its also very cool because imagine if you can hold your iPad in your hand and look at how your equipment is performing second by second, while you can develop the next suite of solutions together with your customer. To put it another way, you can see your baby in action, he added. But this is far from a technological gimmick. The innovation in air quality systems and the integration of digital serves an important purpose. The real world impact of these technological advances will be profound. In the 1970s, for example, you had acid rain falling on parts of Northern Europe, but that is no longer the case because systems have been developed to remove the sulphur from the emissions and hence put a stop to it. As citizens of the world we have a responsibility to do more to clean up our air so that future generations can enjoy healthy lives and inherit an environment that isnt blighted by air pollution. At GE, we are proud that our technology is helping companies and countries around the globe to realise this vision, Bertoni said. Experts agree that bad debts represent a threat to the economy-Photo: Le Toan Experts and economists, at a conference on bad debts held last week, all agreed that the ineffective handling of non-performing loans (NPL) in Vietnam can be summarised into four major concerns, including the lack of specific legal regulations on NPL, the limited power given to the Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC) to trade bad loans, an absent common ground or market for NPL trading, and a legal framework that has not been in place to boost transparency of NPL trading. We have been very good at trapping NPL into VAMC over the past years and proactively trying to deal with the bad loans. The banking system has to compromise a lot as well, said BIDV acting deputy general director Can Van Luc. But we definitely need some breakthroughs now. For a breakthrough in policies and mechanisms, we suggest that its time for the government to come up with a separate law on NPL, as there are too many issues related to NPL currently. Going along with such a law, Luc noted that VAMC should also be equipped with more power to deal with bad loans, namely the ability to dispose of collateral assets and trade bad loans at either a profit or loss. The second breakthrough is having an NPL market that stipulates the buying and selling of bad loans at the market price, added Luc. Experience from Thailand and Malaysia shows that the issue of NPL can only be solved when bad loans are in fact traded in line with market mechanisms. What is more important, according to Luc, would be involving the participation of investors in the NPL market. We ought to really encourage both foreign and domestic investors to take part in the buying and selling of bad debts in Vietnam. We can allow foreign investors to entrust a third party in Vietnam to trade NPL, similar to what South Korea has done successfully. The countrys NPL ratio, as at the end of September, was recorded at 2.62 per cent, a figure for which Luc believes does not take into account the amount of NLP sold to VAMC that have not been collected, and debts that have been restructured under Decision 780 on classification of rescheduled loans enacted last year. The bad debt ratio, as such, may well add up to 7 per cent of the total outstanding debts, consisting of the recently announced NPL and the NPL sold to VAMC that have not been collected, consisting of approximately 85 per cent of what the debt agency has bought, said Luc. He also added that Swiss-backed Credit Suisses calculation of Vietnams NPL ratio is currently standing at 8 per cent of total outstanding debts, whilst the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has come up with a NPL range as high as 10-11 per cent. The actual NPL ratio in accordance with international standards can hardly be a single-digit figure. NPL thus remains a real threat for the entire economy, stressed lawyer Truong Thanh Duc of Banking-Securities-Investment Law Co., Ltd. According to VAMC chairman Nguyen Quoc Hung, the governments debt management arm has collectively bought a total of VND262 trillion ($11.96 billion) of NPL from credit institutions during the period of 2013 through to September 30, at 87 per cent book value of the NPL. The debt agency has so far collected roughly 14 per cent of the total debts taken under its care, equivalent to approximately VND35 trillion ($1.59 billion) or 42.8 per cent of the total NPL. Credit institutions, meanwhile, themselves have resolved VND313.74 trillion ($14.33 billion) worth of bad debts - occupying 57.2 of the total NPL recorded - by means of setting aside risk provisions, sales of collateral, collecting debts, or restructuring their debts in line with the SBVs Decision 780. Last week, the two parties launched their second year of partnership in supporting needy schools in Vietnams remote areas. The sponsorship will benefit nearly 600 students at kindergarten and primary school levels in Tra Vinh, Hau Giang, and Dong Nai provinces. A total wall area of over 3,700 square metres will be painted with low-odour products at schools as part of a three-year joint initiative entitled Painting for a good cause. The project has benefited approximately 850 children since 2015. Four out of the five schools are located in remote areas about 50-60 kilometres away from the centres of Tra Vinh and Hau Giang provinces. In these districts approximately 15-20 per cent of the population earns VND300,000-400,000 ($15-20) per person per month. Poverty and other challenges to development in these areas prevent many children from studying. Meanwhile, the school in Bien Hoa of Dong Nai province, teaches more than 3,000 students in three shifts a day. All schools require maintenance and safety improvements. By offering sponsorship, BASF and Nippon Paint aim to provide safe, suitable, and hygienic learning conditions for the students. The initiative is facilitated by Saigon Childrens Charity CIO. Its School Building and Learning Environments programme has built more than 350 classrooms and assisted thousands of students from kindergarten up to secondary school levels since it was established in 1992. A well-educated young generation is important to BASF, so education is one of the core elements of our corporate citizenship efforts. We work with our partners to provide education to the needy children of Vietnam and develop the leaders of the next generation. The partnership with Nippon Paint underlines our commitment to help improve the quality of life for the neighbouring community, said Tanachart Ralsiripong, managing director of BASF Vietnam. Nippon Paint Vietnam has been active in multiple community projects. Since 2014, the company has painted more than 100 houses in need in Ho Chi Minh City in partnership with Galaxy Cinema and YanTV. It has recently launched a TV reality show entitled Happy House on the popular HTV7 channel, attracting a number of celebrities. BASF Vietnam has partnered up with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training in 2011 to bring Kids Lab, an interactive education programme, to 2,500 primary school students. The company also worked with Saigon Childrens Charity CIO to sponsor a school renovation project in Tap Ngai district of Tra Vinh province to help 75 kids go to school and offer full scholarships to eight university students from needy families for their complete four-year courses. Wet flue gas desulfurisation techonology in action, helping to control sulfur oxide levels This challenge is greatest in rapidly growing economies, where providing energy access to citizens as well as industry is often a government priority. Producing energy comes with an environmental cost, and many developing cities have been experiencing challenges with air pollution in the process of economic development. COP21 responsibilities As the global community faces up to the climate change challenge - due to greenhouse gas emissions - regulations have become more stringent. In December 2015, during the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21), 195 nations gathered in Paris to sign an historic agreement to combat climate change, introducing actions and investment towards a low carbon, resilient, and sustainable future. The Paris climate change agreement commits countries to keep global warming below two degrees Celsius above re-industrial levels. To meet this commitment, governments need to balance the electricity demand and environmental impact needs. New energy mix On a macro level, the world needs roughly 3 per cent more electricity each year, and forecasts show that 2,500 gigawatts of power is needed to sustain that growth. To meet this need, one fuel source alone is not enough - instead, a fuel mix is required. Coal-fired power plays a vital part in the energy generation mix globally. Today, 40 per cent of the worlds electricity is produced from coal. GE predicts that coals share will decrease only slightly, to 30 per cent over the next decade, as coal is often both affordable and available, and provides a reliable source of energy in the fast-growing regions where new generation capacity is critical such as in India, China, the Middle East and Africa. Success here depends on how fossil-fuel powered plants deliver power more flexibly, responsively and cleanly. With coal set to remain worlds second largest energy source through 2030, new GE technology will be critical to achieving global greenhouse gas reduction targets set out at COP21. Vietnams energy future Vietnam is going to produce a major part of its needed power from coal too. The countrys revised Power Development Plan 7, unveiled in March 2016, sets out a blueprint for expanding power generation by using a mix of energy sources. The plan foresees installed capacity to rise to 265GW by 2020. Of the amount, by 2020, coal-fired power will account for 42.7 per cent of all energy sources, up from the current 33.4 per cent. Therefore, Vietnam needs technologies that enable it to produce power more efficiently while lowering the environmental impact. Smarter, cleaner steam power Responding to these issues, GE has developed a portfolio of technologies to meet this need for smarter and cleaner energy, combining physical strengths of legacy Alstom technology with GEs industry-leading digital capabilities to deliver better performance, greater efficiencies and improved reliability of coal-fired steam power plants, while reducing dramatically greenhouse gas emissions. First of all, the portfolio includes technologies that achieve the highest efficiency rate at a power plant, delivering close to 50 per cent against the global average of 33 per cent. The impact on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is significant, as every percentage point improvement in efficiency reduces CO2 emissions by 2 per cent and can reduce fuel consumption by 67,000 tonnes of coal per year with the same megawatt of output. While this is the worlds most efficient technology at the moment, GE is pushing the technologys limit to improve the efficiency even further. They think they can get an additional 1.5 percentage points over the life of the plant and have a path to even greater efficiencies. A second element is air quality control systems, which can remove nitrogen oxide (NOx), sulfur oxide (SOx), and particulate matters from any coal-fired power plan. These solutions can remove up to 95 per cent of NOx and 99 per cent of SOx with no by-products or reagents. Today, GEs technology is removing gaseous pollutants to meet the worlds strictest regulations and it can do even more. As the worlds regulations become even stricter, GEs technology is ready to respond. And the digital capabilities that GE is developing today will improve the efficiency of a power plant even further. Digital capabilities connect energy producing machines via sensors to analytics software, enabling analysis and plant optimisation to achieve even better performance via greater efficiencies and improved reliability. It is estimated that this can produce an additional one to two points of efficiency 6 to 9MW more power in a 600MW plant. The opportunity to reduce emissions and costs is enormous, as these technologies can both be retrofitted as well as built into new power plants. If all existing coal plants achieved just 40 per cent efficiency, the impact on CO2 emissions would already be considerable - two gross tonnes annually. The impact of 50 per cent efficiency across the coal power plant fleet would be a game changer. This portfolio of both existing and new digital capabilities enables countries to power industries and homes while reducing the environmental impact on a global scale. In a fast developing world, GE is providing the support needed to efficiently power it. illustration photo Herfurth, one of the worlds leading shipping, logistics, and forwarding firms, last week signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Vinalines on establishing the logistics centre. The centre called Vietnam House will be located at the port of Antwerp in Flanders, the second-largest seaport and the largest conventional cargo port in Europe. Vietnam House will be a point of entry into Europe for further distribution into the continent and the world. The project will help improve the competitiveness of goods produced in Vietnam, as it will offer competitive rates and value-added services. It will also have incentives for firms in Vietnam when they export and import goods to Europe. Instead of being treated [the same as any foreign export], Vietnamese goods using logistics and warehousing services at the centre will enjoy tax reduction, improved trading conditions, customs facilitation, and other incentives, Le Quang Trung, director of Vinalines Business and International Cooperation Department, told VIR. The Herfurth-Vinalines centre project comes amid the growth of 15-18 per cent in the import-export of commodities between Vietnam and EU countries over the past several years. The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, which was signed in December 2015 and is expected to take effect in 2018, should serve to increase the bilateral trade between Vietnam and the continent. It also better positions Vietnam to get direct access to a market that accounts for around 22 per cent of the world GDP, 25 per cent of overall export value, 21 per cent of the import value, and 40 per cent of the global foreign direct investment sum. There have been other Vietnamese attempts at setting up warehousing centres overseas. However, they specialise in just retail business, and suffer from a lack of local and international links. Vietnamese goods exported to the EU as of now are dispersed which prevents them from enjoying any competitive costs and service advantages. As it stands, most Vietnamese import cargoes are shipped on an FOB (free on board) basis, with the export shipped on a CIF (cost, insurance, and freight) basis. This reflects the fact that Vietnamese importers and exporters do not have much control over transportation of their cargo. As a focal distribution point of Vietnamese goods to the EU, Vietnam House will take further advantage of integrated logistics solutions and supply chain management. It will help facilitate import and export between Vietnam and the EU with the involvement of a wide range of foreign shipping lines, cargo owners, and exporters and importers operating in Vietnam. This facility, as part of Vinalines overseas logistics expansion, is the combination of resources from the Vietnamese side, with Vinalines and its partners including Vinafood, Vinatex, and Lefaso and the European side, with Herfurths Antwerp Port [operation] as well as existing facilities to save investment, Trung said. To ensure the success of the project, Vinalines must seek the support of shipping lines, cargo owners, and other partners. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, a leading Japanese transportation company which operates many direct routes to Europe, is one of the projects early supporters. The project could be successful if the key points are [there]. What are the advantages you can bring to Vietnamese exporters and importers, and how can you help Vietnamese exporters promote their cargoes in Europe?, said Nguyen Dinh Tri, general manager of northern branches at Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (Vietnam) Ltd. Local trade associations are also intrigued by the possibilities Vietnam House will offer. Nguyen Tuong, deputy general secretary and head of the northern representative office of the Vietnam Logistics Business Association (VLA), said that the project is in line with VLAs proposals to place some logistics centres abroad, particularly in Europe. 45 per cent of VLAs logistics providers do business with Europe. But Tuong also sees some challenges. He said, Vinalines and Herfurth should consider some issues. The first is competitiveness in this area, as nearly 800 European distribution centres are located there, by well-known names such as Nike, Toyota, Honda, Volvo, and Samsonite. The other is how to get support from cargo owners, as the majority are importing on an FOB basis, and exporting on a CIF basis. According to Vinalines Trung, after signing the MoU, the two sides will work on the investment model for the project and capital investment for the Vinalines-Herfurth joint venture to operate the centre. The centre is slated to begin operation in the next eight months. After implementing this, Vinalines plans to establish similar logistics centres in Cuba, Myanmar, and Malaysia. Ho Xuan Loc, general manager of Arcelik Groups subsidiary Vietbeko At the launch, Beko introduced its product lineup. A brand of Arcelik Group, Beko offers product lines that include major appliances, air conditioners and small appliances. According to Pornchai Trakultechadej, Arcelik Groups Asia-Pacific marketing and product management director, the company is committed to continuously developing technology to respond to the needs of the new generation, without sacrificing the environment both from the products and manufacturing process. Beko has been successful in Europe, as the number one brand in Europe with the fastest growth in the past seven years. For Beko, the smart generation is the greatest source of inspiration in pioneering future solutions. Beko is inspired by peoples ever-changing needs and lifestyles and strives to help make consumers lives easier with smart home appliance solutions. Under our global brand message The Official Partner of The Everyday, we aim to position Beko to be the partner of everyone at every stage of life, he said. Ho Xuan Loc, general manager of Arcelik Groups subsidiary Vietbeko said the Vietnamese market is an emerging Asian market and is very interesting and potential to Beko. We believe with the outstanding strengths of Beko, our products will be ideal choices for young generation consumers who are tech-savvy and fond of stylishly - designed products in their unique home, he said. Beko is one of the most important players in the UKs home appliances market and also holds top position in the French freestanding and Polish total white goods market. Additionally, Beko has become the fastest growing white goods brand in the German market, the biggest white goods market in Europe, in the last five years with nearly three-fold growth. In Vietnam, Beko would be competing with established players in the white goods market such as Electrolux, South Korean companies Samsung and LG and several Japanese names such as Sanyo, Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba. A mix of economic factors, a positive outlook for the real estate sector, and more stable market conditions has led to a rise in regional investor interest in Vietnams real estate market. The hotel and resort sector in particular has been an interesting area for local and international investors. This is due to several factors: a steady increase in international and domestic tourism; the opening of new, internationally-branded properties; energetic construction activity in well-known and newly-established destinations; and an increased number of direct flights from foreign countries. Vietnam welcomed an estimated 7.2 million international visitors in this years first nine months, a remarkable 25.7 per cent on-year increase, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism. According to STR Global, which tracks supply and demand data for the hotel industry, Vietnam in 2016 has proven to be among the best-performing countries globally. As of August, Ho Chi Minh City alone has accounted for a double-digit growth in year-on-year occupancy (up 14.8 per cent, to a 68.0 per cent overall occupancy rate) - with prices rising 5.2 per cent. Destinations such as Danang and Nha Trang are being set up as regional vacation spots, with direct flights from Singapore, Thailand, China, and South Korea. In addition, emerging destinations such as Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in the central province of Quang Binh, which is home to Son Doong - the worlds largest cave, have helped attract more international attention. These positive indicators have aligned lately, accounting for large increases in investment volume in 2016. At the local level, there have been several land transactions in tourist areas. At the international level, the market has witnessed several acquisitions of operating assets. This year, Vietnam placed an entry in the Asia-Pacific regions top ten transactions list for the first half of 2016, with the acquisition of InterContinental Asiana Saigon at an estimated $74.9 million. Other large transactions include Ho Chi Minh Citys Duxton Hotel, bought for an estimated $49 million, and the Sedona Suites in Hanoi. The majority of the acquisitions have been by Singaporean or Hong Kong-owned companies, with long-time experience in Vietnams real estate sector. In the resort category, the prime areas of foreign interest are Danang, Cam Ranh, and Phu Quoc. These markets have strong historical growth performance, which presents investors with the prospect of higher returns. After the recent announcement of the rebranding of Hoi Ans The Nam Hai, which is now under Four Seasons management, the Danang area is expected to gain even more attention from international investors. Due to many encouraging factors, internationals have been buying into local hospitality Photo: Le Toan Foreign investors are mainly attracted to properties already in operation, upscale and higher, located in the central parts of major cities. And recently, foreign investment has begun to target humbler holdings, with private investors exploring mid-range and upper mid-range hotel acquisitions. Ideally, these properties have 100 to 150 rooms, ensuring operating efficiency, with full or select service. That said, there are a very limited number of quality midscale hotels on the market. The majority of those available for sale are of low-quality design, with reduced potential for rebranding opportunities. We see a potential for local developers willing to undertake greenfield projects to tap into this midscale interest. International and regional management companies are also actively looking for projects in Vietnam for management or, in certain cases, for lease contracts. In recent years, several management agreements have been signed, including JW Marriott in Phu Quoc and Danang, Sol House by Melia in Phu Quoc, Ibis Style in Nha Trang, Four Points in Danang, Ozo in Hoi An, Melia in Ho Tram, Raddison Blu and Movenpick in Cam Ranh, X2Vibe in Hoi An, Holiday Inn and Hilton in Ho Chi Minh City, Four Seasons in Danang, and Wyndham in Halong Bay. Besides operating hotels, foreign investors are interested in condotel projects and beach frontage villas, especially if offered with rental guarantee returns, furnishings, and branded management. Investors in second home units in Vietnam are typically high-income individuals familiar with the country - in some cases with local business commitments or Vietnamese partners. With approximately 45 projects launched between 2015 and 2016 and more than 15,000 units currently under construction, second home developments have started to play a very important role in the overall real estate market. Among those under construction and available for sale, condotels comprise 76 per cent of the total supply, which indicates a recent favourable trend. However, the condotel still remains a very risky business model, especially if developed by less-experienced developers with no real knowledge of the operational aspect. To date however, limited sales have been recorded to foreign buyers, with the exception of some well-planned, smaller-scale projects; landed villa-type projects as opposed to high-rise buildings. Developers reputations, operations, and designs, together of course with price and location, are still among the most important factors. Overall, the hospitality market in Vietnam presents clear opportunities for investment. It relies on growing global demand and leverages improvements in the countrys infrastructure, making for a healthy potential for sustainable future growth. Danang has led the way in garnering international investors attention in the hospitality market, demonstrating that government authorities can indeed co-operate with private investors on sustainable development. On the other hand, there will be bumpy rides for some due to short-term oversupply cycles. Investors and developers will need to cope with some cashing in on the markets healthy outlook as it continues to mature. Saint Anthony church is seen partially collapsed following an earthquake along the road to Norcia, Italy. (Photo source: REUTERS/Remo Casilli) Remarkably, there were no reports of any fatalities as a result of the 6.6-magnitude quake but more than 3,000 people were left temporarily homeless, the national civil protection agency said. "We can confirm that we have no information on victims," said agency head Fabrizio Curcio, adding that 20 people had been injured, relatively lightly. However "many buildings are in a critical state in historic centres and there are problems with electricity and water supplies," Curcio told reporters. The quake struck at 7.40am (2.40pm Singapore time) near Norcia in the region of Umbria, unleashing a shock felt in the capital Rome and even in Venice, 300 kilometres away. Norcia residents were barred from returning to their homes on safety grounds and, as night fell, hundreds were being transported by bus to nearby Lake Trasimeno, where temporary accommodation in hotels and gymnasiums had been arranged. It was Italy's biggest quake since a 6.9-magnitude one struck the south of the country in 1980, leaving 3,000 people dead. More than 50 powerful aftershocks rumbled throughout the day, some 15 of them between magnitude 4 and 5. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi reiterated a government pledge to rebuild every damaged house and ensure that dozens of remote communities do not become ghost towns. "Fatigue must not turn into resignation" he urged, during a short press conference in Rome, adding that an extraordinary cabinet meeting on Monday would discuss the quake situation. DESPAIR SETS IN The most important architectural casualty was Norcia's 14th-century Basilica of Saint Benedict. Built on the reputed birthplace of the Catholic saint, it had survived dozens of quakes over the centuries. But it had been compromised by other recent tremors and Sunday's saw it collapse in on itself with only the facade left standing. The church is looked after by an international community of Benedictine monks based in two local monasteries which attract some 50,000 pilgrims every year. "It was like a bomb went off," said the town's deputy mayor, Pierluigi Altavilla. "We are starting to despair. There are too many quakes now, we can't bear it anymore." Lucia Rafael, one of several nuns forced to flee their convent in the town, told AFP the prolonged shaking had "felt like the apocalypse." Giuseppe Pezzanesi, mayor of Tolentino in the neighbouring Marche region, said "the people are on their knees psychologically." SHOCK FELT IN ROME The quake's epicentre was located at a very shallow depth of one kilometre, six kilometres north of Norcia, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), which measured the magnitude at 6.6. Italy's institute of geology and vulcanology (IGNV) measured the quake at 6.5 and said it had been preceded by a 6.1-magnitude shock an hour earlier. It came four days after quakes of 5.5- and 6.1-magnitude hit the same area and nine weeks after nearly 300 people died in an Aug 24 disaster in the tourist town of Amatrice at the peak of the holiday season. French seismologist Pascal Bernard warned that the quakes were likely to continue in the weeks or even months to come. "We aren't talking about replicas of this magnitude, they are normally smaller," the researcher told AFP. The 13th-century civic tower in Amatrice, which was damaged but left standing by the August quake, also collapsed on Sunday. As with Wednesday's tremors, the impact was mitigated by the fact that any buildings deemed vulnerable to seismic activity had been evacuated. The quake was powerful enough to set off car alarms in Rome, 120 kilometres from the epicentre. Part of the capital's underground rail network and a road flyover were temporarily closed to allow structural checks to be carried out and schools will not open Monday for the same reason. Tests were also carried out on Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, which remained open to the faithful on Sunday for the Angelus prayer at which the Pope spoke of his "closeness" to the people affected. Much of Italy's land mass and some of its surrounding waters are prone to seismic activity with the highest risk concentrated along its mountainous central spine. Italy straddles the Eurasian and African tectonic plates, making it vulnerable to seismic activity when they move. In addition to the Amatrice disaster in August, just over 300 people perished when a quake struck near the city of L'Aquila in 2009. In 1980, tremors near Naples left 3,000 dead and an estimated 95,000 died in the 1908 Messina disaster, when a quake in the waters between mainland Italy and Sicily sent massive waves crashing into both coasts. Students will also engage with practical education, in the form of engagement with MHI To develop specialities in Vietnams workforce requires training in specialised skills. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. has just established a scholarship-based Japanese language programme in Japan for Vietnamese students, to promote capacity building in this way. In September of last year, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) and the Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation on human resource development for the promotion of machinery industries in Vietnam. In response to this, MHI established a scholarship programme to boost expertise in the field. Students will start the programme by coming to Japan and studying Japanese. Under the terms of MHIs agreement with MoET, MHI has developed a tailored Japanese language training programme. Each year, the programme calls for five students to study Japanese for 18 months, and, following this, seek to attend a Japanese university. The first five students on this programme arrived in Japan earlier this month, and will begin their language training course at Sendagaya Japanese College in Tokyo. The students are highly committed. One of them said, Japanese has different grammar to Vietnamese, so it is not easy, but we will try our very hardest. Sendagaya Japanese College in Takadanobaba Tokyo Five years of skill building University education is essential to cultivating comprehensive human resources. In rapidly industrialising Vietnam, there is a strong demand for human resource capacity in industrial fields such as energy and infrastructure. The MHI Scholarship Programme is aimed at Vietnamese humanities and science students. Each year the programme will support five students, covering a total of 25 students over a period of five years. MHI also plans to offer the students a chance to study its advanced technologies during their stay in Japan. The students expressed their hopes and ambitions for the programme. One said, In addition to studying at the college, we hope to have opportunities for practical education, through activities such as interacting with MHI engineers who work at the forefront of technology, and factory internships. To date, MHI has contributed to human resource development in Vietnam by establishing endowed professorships in nuclear and aeronautical engineering at the Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST) and the Electric Power University, since 2009 and 2010. This latest scholarship programme offers enhanced content, collaboration with MoET, and a long-term commitment to human resource development. This is MHIs first attempt to establish such a long-term educational programme. The general manager of MHIs Hanoi office, Kenichi Sonoda, said, I am very happy to be able to send talented young Vietnamese students to Japan. They will doubtless encounter challenges when living away from their home country, but Im confident that in the future they will act as a bridge between Vietnam and Japan. MHI Group: providing industrial solutions, from nuclear to space MHI Group is a comprehensive equipment manufacturer and systems supplier, active in land, sea, air, and space technologies. The company has delivered infrastructure products to Vietnam in a wide range of fields, including thermal generation equipment, steelmaking machinery, and machining tools. In the nuclear generation field, the ATMEA1 nuclear reactor jointly developed by MHI and Areva, a French group specialising in nuclear power and renewable energies has been proposed for a project in the south central province of Ninh Thuan. The Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (SBIC), the parent company of Song Cam Shipyard, has just submitted a document to the Ministry of Transport (MoT) concerning their proposed sale of a 70 per cent stake at Song Cam Shipyard to the Dutch group, one of the worlds largest shipyard operators. In the statement, SBIC chairman Nguyen Ngoc Su claimed that they had met Damen Holding Vietnams CEO at a mid-October meeting who urged accelerating the merger and acquisition deal. The SBIC statement also stressed the crucial importance of cooperation with Damen in the groups current business restructuring efforts. In this January, based on a SBIC proposal, the MoT submitted to the prime minister its proposal to deal with the transfer request. Song Cam Shipyard currently has assets in four member companies: Song Cam 1, Song Cam 2, a 30 per cent stake in Damen-Song Cam Shipbuilding Joint Venture (JV), and the Ben Kien Shipyard branch. Meanwhile, Damen was reportedly not interested in buying Song Cam Shipyards assets in Song Cam 1 and the 30 per cent stake in Damen-Song Cam JV for a variety of reasons. For example, Song Cam Shipyard owns 30 per cent of Damen-Song Cam JV and if Damen was approved to purchase 70 per cent of Song Cam Shipyard, its stake possession in the JV could reach 91 per cent, which does not match the Dutch groups investment policy and strategy in Vietnam. Damen Group wants the transfer of Song Cam Shipyards assets in Song Cam 1 and the 30 per cent stake in Damen-Song Cam JV to SBIC before they engage in purchasing the 70 per cent Song Cam Shipyard stake. Another option would be to combine Song Cam 2 and the Ben Kien branch into a new entity and selling 70 per cent of that to Damen, SBIC said in its statement. This separation of assets would help satisfy Damens requirements while keeping its ownership at 30 per cent in the JV will be more beneficial to SBIC, the statement noted. In addition, SBIC has been urging the government to enact a separate document authorising the sale of 70 per cent of Song Cam Shipyard to either corporate or individual domestic and foreign investors. These sales, according to SBICs proposals, would not be constricted by the 49 per cent foreign shareholding cap stipulated by Government Decree 60/2015/ND-CP, said MoT Deputy Chief Nguyen Hong Truong. Song Cam Shipyard is one of the most effective companies among the eight subsidiaries of SBIC. It did not once incur losses in the past five years and was the largest foreign currency-earner at SBIC through high-value ship export contracts, most notably exporting Damen-Song Cam JVs products. Vietnam is mulling a new law, with its first-ever programme specifically intended to support startups Photo: Le Toan The National Assembly is scrutinising a draft law on supporting small- and medium-sized enterprises, which includes a separate section highlighting the countrys first-ever programme for establishing and supporting startups, also known as innovative firms. The programme covers a wide range of incentives for startups to access the markets. For example, high-tech experts working at startups will have preferential personal income tax. They will also be supported by the government in technology transfer, piloting products, and participation in corporate incubators. According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), startups will also be supported in training, governance, legal consultancy, investment attraction, brand promotion, and intellectual property protection. Notably, the new law will facilitate the establishment of private investment funds to provide loans for startups. These funds will be created by capital contributions from local and foreign investors, organisations, and individuals. According to the draft law, the government will detail the establishment, organisation, and management of private investment funds for innovative companies, as well as instruct the procedures for capital and profit transfer by these investors in and out of Vietnam. MPI Deputy Minister Dang Huy Dong said the incentives for startups will help develop Vietnams private firms, whose number is estimated to reach one million by 2020. This will also help improve the competitiveness of the economy. Dong said that though the details of incentives have yet to be revealed, the incentives are expected to create a wave of startups in Vietnam. According to MPI, many localities and investors have established investment funds for young businesses, from which they see great development potential. For example, Ho Chi Minh City will launch a VND1 trillion ($45.5 million) support package for young businesses, including tech startups. This fund is expected to be launched in November 2016. Eligible projects will be granted VND2 billion ($91,000) each to operate a prototype. The long list of eligible projects include mechanics, electronics, chemicals, food production, finance, banking, insurance, commerce, transport, tourism, logistics, communication, real estate, healthcare, education, and technology. The city will also launch a programme to connect startups with investment funds. In March 2016, local giant FPT and investment group Dragon Capital inked a co-operation deal on the establishment of a fund named Vietnam Innovative Startup Accelerator (VIISA) to finance startups in Vietnam. VIISA is an open-ended fund with the participation of many large firms. It trains and invests in startups in the sectors of information technology, mobile, internet, and finance. Currently, over 20 foreign venture capital firms have expanded to Vietnam, where 1,800 startups are in operation. Funding into Vietnamese startups has come from many regional venture corporations, such as Golden Gate Ventures, Gobi Partners, and Expara Ventures, while IDG Ventures and VinaCapital DFJ are seeking exits for their portfolios. VinaCapital DFJ is also mulling over a second fund next year. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. Pen Sovann, Cambodias first post-Khmer Rouge prime minister, died from a long-standing illness on Saturday at his home in Takeo province. He was 80. Political observers mourned a man they described as an important politician who opposed Vietnamese influence in Cambodia, but was never a well-known political personality. Sovann was prime minister from 1979 to 1981, when he was arrested and detained in Vietnam for opposing Vietnamese immigration. Yem Ponharith, opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party spokesman, said Sovanns decade-long jailing in Vietnam had led to a deterioration in his health. However, he had remained on the political stage well into his later years, winning a seat in the 2013 election on a CNRP ticket. He was a very important person, a historian and a witness to history. He contributed considerably to the CNRP by offering ideas and opinion to the next generation of youth to be more aware of national issues, he said. Sovann had suffered a stroke in 2015 and retired from politics, but continued to suffer high blood pressure and diabetes. The former prime minister was born on April 15, 1936, in Tramkak districts Samrong commune. He received military training in Vietnam. Before being elected in 2013, from 2008 to 2012, he was the chief advisor to the Human Rights Party, then led by current CNRP deputy leader Kem Sokha. So Chantha, a political scientist, said Sovann was a nationalist from the political elite who was opposed to what he saw as excessive Vietnamese immigration to the country following the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge. He added that Sovann was staunchly opposed to nepotism and thought the corruption that has become endemic in Cambodias political system was wrong. Though Cambodia has turned to China of late for support and aid, its hard to conclude that its true that Cambodia is turning to China [and away from Vietnam], it may just be political drama. Sambo Manara, a historian, said Sovanns experience fighting against the Khmer Rouge meant that he understood the plight of ordinary Cambodians, adding that he was a problem solver who loved Cambodia. Writing on Facebook on Sunday, CNRP president Sam Rainsy said Sovann had spent time in prison because he had opposed the so-called K-5 Plan, also known as the Bamboo Curtain, an attempt to stop Khmer Rouge infiltration into Cambodia from Thailand, which caused thousands of injuries and many deaths from landmines and malaria. As prime minister, Sovann led the Kampuchea Peoples Revolutionary Party, the progenitor of current Prime Minister Hun Sens Cambodian Peoples Party. Sok Eysan, CPP spokesman, played down Sovanns anti-Khmer Rouge credentials, saying that if he had remained in power in 1981 there would not have been an end to the civil war. We knew that Pen Sovann opposed the K 5-Plan. And what was the K5-Plan? It was a plan to curb the return of Pol Pot and genocide toward Cambodians throughout the country. Thus, when he opposed the K5-Plan, it meant he wanted the return of a genocidal regime, he said. The CNRP announced they were entering a seven-day mourning period following Sovanns death. Civil society groups and governments in the Mekong region are getting closer towards agreeing to guidelines that could see greater public participation in the drafting of environmental impact assessments before large-scale infrastructure developments, according to participants at a recent forum in Phnom Penh. Speaking on the sidelines of the meeting on Friday, Su Sovuth, undersecretary at the environment ministry, said the draft agreement could see communities living along the Mekong who oppose projects having more of a say, when it comes into effect next year. They have every right to protest, he said, adding that many of the peoples were indigenous groups that think the forest belongs to their ancestors and should be allowed to remain in their homelands. The rules would also be of benefit to investors, he said, who would be better placed to assess project risks. Tek Vannara, executive director of the NGO Forum on Cambodia, said large-scale development projects, such as hydroelectric dams, were a growing concern because of the associated environmental and social impacts. He said the guidelines would ensure the full rights [of local people] in the process of assessing environmental impacts. The policy was first drafted in August last year and is expected to be reviewed before being ratified in 2017 at a meeting in Myanmar. Romas Svel, an ethnic Jarai from Ratanakkiri province, said that so far little information about the new process had reached his community. They threaten us and think we are scared because we lack culture, and knowledge, that that's why we are afraid of them, he said. They do not study the area, they dont inform us because they think that [we] dont know anything. Early voting is underway in some 37 U.S. states, with millions of Americans casting ballots before the November 8th election. VOA's Chris Simkins reports that voters in the key battleground state of North Carolina are ignoring the divisive campaign rhetoric and voting on issues important to them. Backers of a global accord to fight climate change that formally comes into force on Friday say they are confident the deal can survive any legal challenges by U.S. Republican candidate Donald Trump if he wins next week's presidential election. Trump has threatened to reject the accord negotiated by nearly 200 governments, including that of U.S. President Barack Obama. Trump once tweeted that global warming was a concept invented by the Chinese to harm U.S. industry. By contrast, his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has strongly supported the plan, which enters into force after major greenhouse gas emitters the United States, China and India ratified it. The Paris Agreement aims to phase out man-made greenhouse gases in the second half of the century to avert floods, heat waves, droughts and rising sea levels. Delegates from signatory nations meet in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh on Nov. 7-18 to start turning their many promises on tackling climate change into action and draw up a "rule book" for the sometimes fuzzily worded accord reached last December. Adding urgency, 2016 is set to be the hottest year since records began in the 19th century. Speedy ratification The U.S. election, on Nov. 8, injects a large dose of political uncertainty into the gathering of environment ministers and senior officials in Marrakesh. The relatively speedy ratification of the climate pact, a year before many predictions, was partly driven by Trump's threats to reject the accord. Some delegates played down the risk of a President Trump reneging on the deal. "The momentum is such that it would take a heck of a climate sceptic to back pedal," said Tosi Mpanu Mpanu of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who heads the group of 48 Least Developed Countries at the Morocco negotiations. "That's really why we have had this strong mobilization [to ratify]. If Trump wins, I don't think it will change anything." Its entry into force gives some protection for the Paris Agreement under international law. Its Article 28 says any government wanting to quit has to wait through four years of formalities the length of a U.S. presidential term. Astonishing progress If he wins, Trump is likely to focus his efforts domestically on undoing Obama's plans to cut U.S. emissions, such as from coal-fired power plants. The Paris Agreement also helped to unlock U.N. accords this year to limit emissions from airlines and from powerful greenhouse gases used in air conditioners and refrigerators. "There has been astonishing progress" on climate change after years of deadlock, said Andrew Steer, head of the World Resources Institute think-tank. The global pacts contrast with more nationalist forces that helped Trump to win the U.S. Republican nomination for president and, on the other side of the Atlantic, Britain's vote in June to leave the European Union. The Paris Agreement enters into force after passing a threshold last month of ratification by 55 nations representing 55 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. The tally is now 87 nations representing about 60 percent of emissions. The United States alone accounts for 18 percent of global emissions. Under a Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, Trump could not renounce the U.S. share and then argue that the entire entry into force was invalid. "Entry into force only goes one way. It can't be reversed," said Elliot Diringer, executive vice-president of the non-partisan Center for Climate and Energy Solutions in Washington. Legal challenges But there could be legal challenges. The U.S. Republican Party platform says Obama, a Democrat who used his executive powers to ratify the agreement, should have submitted it to the Senate, where it would almost certainly have been rejected. Governments in Marrakesh will try to bolster the pact, which sets many goals for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 or 2030. Governments are under pressure to spell out what they will do now rather than leave it to their successors. At its core, the Paris Agreement promises to limit global warming to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times. But current pledges for limiting emissions are too weak and will allow temperatures to rise by perhaps 3C (5.4F) or more by 2100. Free-for-all design Diplomats expect it will take two years or more to write a rule book for the accord. Among difficulties, the Agreement allows all countries set their own targets for emissions. That free-for-all design helped ensure wide support but is at odds with a need for a central set of rules to monitor and report greenhouse gas emissions from factories, cars, farms and power plants. Irrespective of the rules, the prices of renewable energies are falling sharply, prompting a shift from fossil fuels. U.S. climate envoy Jonathan Pershing said wind and solar energy accounted for two-thirds of all new electricity-generating capacity installed in the United States in 2015. "The U.S. solar industry now employs more people than coal," he said. Still, Trump says he will promote the U.S. coal and oil industries to safeguard domestic jobs and national security. He says a shift from fossil fuels would force the United States to be "begging for oil again" from Middle East suppliers. Since Donald Trump has suggested he may contest the results of a rigged presidential election, worries that such rhetoric could inspire Election Day violence has prompted many government officials throughout the United States to prepare for that possibility. The Republican presidential nominees calls to his supporters to serve as volunteer poll watchers, presumably in areas where a big vote is expected for his opponent, Hillary Clinton, also has aroused concerns about possible Election Day violence. At the same time, recent court rulings have sharply reduced the number of special election observers the federal government can dispatch to polling places to watch for any voter intimidation. A recent opinion poll by USA Today and Suffolk University found that 51 percent of likely voters are concerned about outbreaks of violence next month, and that nearly half of that group said they are very concerned. One concerned voter is Richard Darling, who lives in a suburb of the city of Detroit, Michigan. Darling says half of the entire U.S. population will feel threatened if Trump wins the presidential election; he believes there are that many recipients of government entitlements or illegal immigrants, who might expect a crackdown by Trump if he wins the White House. Stocking up on ammunition There could be uprisings in that case, and if there are, I want to be able to protect myself," Darling told VOA. "So ... thats why Im stocking up on more ammunition for my weapons, just in case I have to protect my family and others around me." A former U.S. congressman, Joe Walsh, seemed to fuel that sentiment when he took to Twitter this week: On November 8th, Im voting for Trump. On November 9th, if Trump loses, Im grabbing for my musket. You in? Walsh said later that the musket reference was a metaphor, meaning that voters should express their dissatisfaction through acts of civil disobedience. Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin has suggested that bloodshed would be "necessary" to "reclaim" the country if Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton becomes president. Whose blood will be shed? It may be that of those in this room," Bevin said while speaking at an event in Washington last month. "It might be that of our children and grandchildren. I have nine children. It breaks my heart to think that it might be their blood that is needed to redeem something, to reclaim something that we, through our apathy and indifference, have given away." More school closings than usual In the midst of the contentious national political debate, election officials across the U.S. are on high alert. Although many public schools are normally closed on Election Day and used as polling places, school boards have ordered the closure of other classroom centers where no voting is taking place, or they have asked election officials to relocate their polling stations. In Denver, in the western state of Colorado, Election Day readiness plans have included training poll workers how to respond to "active shooter" situations. We did add an active shooter training module for all of our field workers and all of our election judges, even those who are inside the building in our central office, said Amber McReynolds, director of the Denver Elections Division, in an interview with VOA. McReynolds said the additional training was provided because we want our teams to be prepared should anything, any emergency situations, arise. She added that election officials will be in regular contact with city police to ensure citizens have a safe voting experience. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission, a small government agency, told VOA it is collaborating with local election officials to ensure the continuity, security and integrity of elections in America. Contingency planning recommendations include the establishment of alternate polling locations in the event of an evacuation and the preparation of a list of at least five worst-case scenarios. There is no federal law that governs the postponement of elections, but the commission said some states have statutes permitting such action in certain situations. The U.S. Justice Department and the FBI say they will be ready to respond to any violent outbreaks at the polls by placing monitors at select polling places. A centralized command post at FBI headquarters in Washington will monitor any threats reported throughout the U.S. In addition to FBI personnel, the command post will be manned by Justice Department and Homeland Security Department authorities to ensure that allegations relating to violations of federal criminal law and security threats to the election are appropriately handled. FBI agents serving as Election Crime Coordinators will also be on duty at the agencys 56 field offices throughout the U.S. Brazilians voted on municipal elections Sunday and experts say the results could influence the 2018 presidential elections. President Michel Temers center-right PMDB (Party of the Brazilian Democratic Movement) and allied parties such PSDB (Brazilian Social Democratic Party) were the biggest winners. Those parties, that are being strengthened now in 2016, will have better conditions to present candidates for the presidency in 2018. This then places the PSDB and the PMDB as the two protagonists of this 2018 election, political scientist Geraldo Tadeu said. Brazils Workers' Party - PT - lost big in the first local runoff elections since Dilma Rousseffs impeachment. Local reports say Brazilians want change as they continue to struggle during one of the country's worst recessions and aftermath of the Petrobras scandal; the state-run oil company at the center of a sprawling political kickback scheme. PT also has no presidential alternatives, according to experts. The Brazilian Senate voted to remove Rousseff from the presidency for pedaladas fiscais - the practice of using public money to fund state or federal social programs without the approval of Congress. The PT lost its protagonist so the left will have to reinvent themselves over the next years. The PT will have to battle its position of leadership again within the Brazilian left as the government will certainly lean to the center-right and not the center-left, Tadeu said. One of the highlighted battlegrounds took place in Rio de Janeiro, where a conservative evangelical bishop is the new mayor after a run-off election. Marcelo Crivella took 59.5 percent of the votes while his leftist rival, Marcelo Freixo, a teacher representing the Socialism and Liberty party, received 40.6 percent. On the campaign trail, Crivella promised to bring order to a city entangled with high crime, impoverished neighborhoods, and a crumbling basic infrastructure. Experts say voters in Brazil are rejecting mainstream politicians and voting for people with little political experience like Crivella and Freixo, which they say are signs of the polarized times. How is it possible that in Rio de Janeiro, a city of joy and openness about sexuality, there will be a mayor who is very conservative, discriminates and opposes Afro-Brazilian religions? The [centrist] alliance that governed the city has broken, Mauricio Santoro, a political analyst at Rios State University, said. Crivella is a bishop at the well-known and followed Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, founded by his billionaire uncle. He made controversial statements in a book he wrote in 1999 where he called Roman Catholics "demonic" and said Hindus drank their children's blood. He also claimed that homosexuality is evil and that African religions worship "evil spirits." The bishop, now elected-mayor, said he would devote himself above all to health, education, transport and public safety. Sao Paulo, a city that usually brings recognition to politicians at a national level, elected its new mayor in the first election round back in October. Incumbent Workers Party candidate Fernando Haddad received just 16 percent of the vote. Joao Doria from PSDB - the millionaire businessman who led the campaign from the beginning - received 53 percent. Doria was able to avoid a runoff since he received more than 50 percent of the votes. But analysts say that while center-right parties had impressive wins and could look forward to the upcoming presidential election, these newly elected-officials have to govern and deliver promises during one of the countrys worst recessions. Voters could easily become frustrated, political scientist Fernando Schuler said. Authorities continued assessing damage in the central Italy town of Norcia Monday, a day after it was rocked by a 6.6-magnitude earthquake. Although Sunday's quake was stronger than the August 24 temblor that killed about 300 people, no new deaths were reported. But there was extensive damage. In the historic towns center, several churches were destroyed, including the 14th century Basilica of St. Benedict constructed on the birthplace of the Benedictine monastic orders founder and the Cathedral of St. Mary Argentea, known for its 15th century frescoes. Sunday's quake also knocked down the Basilica of San Francesco, built by the Franciscans in the 14th century. It had already been rebuilt once following a powerful earthquake in 1859. Large sections of Norcia's ancient Roman city walls, damaged in the previous quakes, crumbled along with towers. Experts said Sunday's quake was the strongest to hit the region since 1980, when a 6.9 quake in Italy's south killed 2,735 people. Promises to rebuild Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi pledged Monday to rebuild parts of central Italy and find temporary housing for all those displaced by the latest quakes. "Italy has many faults, but these situations bring out the best of us," Renzi said. "We will rebuild everything: the houses, the churches and the businesses. Everything that needs to be done to rebuild these areas will be done." Many people had already fled that area after the deadly August 24, followed by two strong aftershocks last Wednesday. Large boulders and rock slides blocked several highways, cutting off some villages from the outside. A nearly nonstop series of small aftershocks made conditions difficult for emergency workers. The U.S. National Geological Survey reported Sunday's quake was centered near Norcia and at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometers, making it felt over a widespread area. In Rome, 90 kilometers to the south, schools were closed Monday so buildings could be inspected for structural damage, according to a municipal website. National polls in the U.S. show Democrat Hillary Clinton with a narrow edge over Republican Donald Trump in the last week of the presidential campaign, but the reopened investigation into Clinton's emails from her tenure as secretary of state has added an uncertain element to their last dash for the White House. Several national surveys Monday showed Clinton with a 1-to-3 percentage point advantage over Trump, and with the two candidates locked in tight races in several highly contested states that will decide the outcome and make one of them the country's 45th president. Other surveys still show Clinton with a more likely path to victory, which would make her the country's first female president. The long campaign, already filled with numerous twists and turns that have left both candidates with unfavorable ratings among voters, was jarred again when Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey announced the new email probe, to look at thousands of emails found on the computer of the estranged husband of a key Clinton aide, Huma Abedin. Investigators secured a search warrant and are now trying to determine whether they are related to Clinton's handling of national security material in her emails while she was the country's top diplomat from 2009 to 2013. While Democrats denounced Comey's reopened investigation, Trump told a rally in Michigan that "it took a lot of guts" for Comey to take a new look at Clinton's emails. "What he did was the right thing." Trump said. WATCH: Clinton talks about the timing Clinton told cheering supporters in Ohio she is confident investigators will reach the same conclusion in the new probe as they did in examining previous emails. "There is no case here," she declared. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said President Barack Obama, who has campaigned several times for Clinton and often disparaged Trump, would neither "defend nor criticize" Comey's action in reopening the investigation. Earnest said Obama believes Comey is "a man of integrity." FBI probe Comey had previously closed an investigation into Clinton's handling of the classified material in July, declaring that she was "extremely careless" in dealing with the documents but that no criminal charges were warranted. For her part, Clinton has said on numerous occasions that her use of a private, unsecured email server based in her New York home was a mistake, but that she did not knowingly send or receive classified material through the numerous electronic devices she used. WATCH: Earnest on FBI Director Comey Polls have shown little immediate impact from Comey's renewed investigation, which Democrats have attacked as politically motivated and an uncalled for, last-minute intrusion into the November 8 election that violated the FBI's long-standing tradition of avoiding any actions that might sway a political contest. Meanwhile, Trump is trying to capitalize on the renewed look at Clinton's emails, which have cast a cloud over her candidacy from the start more than a year ago. "Hillary Clinton is not the victim," Trump told a rally late Sunday in the southwestern state of New Mexico, where Clinton holds a solid lead. "You, the American people, are the victims of this corrupt system. When we win on November 8, we are going to Washington, D.C., and we are going drain the swamp." WATCH: Trump on Comey doing "the right thing" With polls showing that Clinton is leading in states that Democratic presidential candidates have traditionally carried, Trump is attempting in the last days of the campaign to flip several of these states to give him a better path to the White House. Electoral College U.S. presidents are not elected by the national popular vote, but rather by contests in each of the country's 50 states and the capital city of Washington, with the most populous states carrying the most weight in determining the overall outcome. Trump's New Mexico and Michigan visits, as well as stops in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania on Tuesday, are all aimed at capturing states where surveys show Clinton ahead and poised to win their electoral votes. Both Clinton and Trump are searching for the majority of 270 or more of the 538 votes in the Electoral College. Clinton is in Ohio, another Midwestern state, on Monday. Polls there show Trump with a slight edge; no Republican has ever won the presidency without winning the state, where there are both large industrial centers and vast farmlands. Several polling analysts say Clinton is close already to securing the 270 electoral votes or even above that majority figure. One of the closest of the battleground states is Florida, in the southeastern part of the country. Both Trump, who has an oceanfront mansion as a second home in the state, and Clinton have held numerous rallies in Florida, hoping to gain a last-minute edge in a state with 29 electoral votes. She campaigned Sunday in Florida, and she is making three more stops there on Tuesday. Numerous Democrats have attacked Comey for divulging the existence of the renewed email probe so close to the election. Philippine President Rodrigo Dutertes visit to Japan swings his country a degree back toward the United States despite a strain in relations and it may signal growth of a multilateral foreign policy aimed at maximizing development aid. The outspoken yet cryptic presidents three-day trip last week cemented a relationship between two democratic Asia Pacific allies. It also generated $19 billion in investment and loan pledges from Tokyo as well as prospects for joint military exercises. Duterte, in office since June 30, made the visit less than a week after meeting Chinese officials, who offered economic help worth about $24 billion. Its a three-way courtship, China, Japan and the U.S., and Duterte knows all of this at this time, said Eduardo Araral, an associate professor at the National University of Singapores public policy school. At the end of the day he just wants to get more benefits from these relationships. China has separate maritime sovereignty disputes with Manila and Tokyo. It accuses the United States of trying to contain its expansion. Dutertes two visits followed a string of harshly worded demands that the United States stop helping his country militarily and economically. The United States is the Southeast Asian archipelagos former colonizer of nearly five decades and its chief benefactor since World War II, when Japanese troops invaded parts of the country and left between 500,000 and 1 million dead. US relations Analysts say the president may be using the Japan trip to craft a foreign policy that includes the United States, just with less dependence than in the past. Washington is still helping the Philippines resist Muslim separatist rebels and conduct naval patrols that would spot any Chinese vessels in an exclusive economic zone off the archipelagos west coasts. The United States and the Philippines signed a Mutual Defense Treaty in 1951, obligating each side to support the other if attacked by a third party. What [Duterte] says may be very different than actual policy, said Christian de Guzman, vice president and senior analyst with Moodys Investors Service in Singapore. "No official diplomatic requests have been made in terms of a change of policy. Dutertes predecessor, Benigno Aquino, filed for arbitration with a world court to stop Chinese vessels from passing within his countrys 370-km (200 nautical-mile) exclusive ocean economic zone in the South China Sea. The maritime dispute fanned widespread public discontent with China. Polls show that Philippine citizens largely favor U.S. aid compared to help from China, a Communist country with poor relations in recent years because of the maritime dispute. Generous donor Japan contributes heavily to the Manila-based Asian Development Bank, which has lent the Philippines an average $745 million per year since 2006 for poverty reduction. The separately run, government-funded Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) gave the Philippines $272 million in 2006 alone. In the case of Japan, those longstanding commercial and government ties are just being further cemented, de Guzman said. In July, the Japanese prime minister offered the Philippines a loan for 10 coast guard patrol ships. Japan has given military and development aid elsewhere in Southeast Asia to counter Chinas influence. Japanese conglomerate Marubeni Corp. will make up $17.2 billion of the Japanese help pledged last week, according to Philippine media reports. That amount would cover highways, electrical power and mass transit projects. Disaster relief Aid to date is felt in spots such as the southern Philippine city Cagayan de Oro, where the cooperation agency is helping fund a flood control project, local newspaper columnist Antonio Montalvan said. Flood control became a priority after tropical storm Washi hit the city in 2011 and caused 1,250 deaths. Parts of the city were inundated by floodwaters from the river, and its JICA, theyre constructing a flood control system now and people see that, Montalvan said. So I would think theres no problem with the Japan aspect of Duterte. Duterte may prefer Japan over the United States because, unlike Washington, Tokyo does not criticize the Philippine governments suspected extrajudicial killings in the crackdown on drugs, analysts say. In turn, the Philippine visitor avoided playing up World War II to his Japanese hosts. He got $19 billion worth of aid, and soft loans and potential investments despite the fact that Japan invaded the Philippines and there were a lot of deaths during the World War II, Araral said. But Duterte kept his mouth shut because he knows that Japan is a huge donor of the Philippines. As the FBI obtained a warrant to start searching a collection of emails that may be relevant to the investigation of Hillary Clintons use of a private email server when she served as secretary of state, Democrats suggested the timing and announcement of the probe were politically motivated. FBI investigators knew weeks ago that emails found in a separate investigation may be related to the Clinton email case, but did not reveal their discovery until 11 days before the presidential election. FBI Director James Comey sent a letter to congressional leaders Friday informing them of the development. Comey said in his notification to Congress that investigators didnt know if the discovery was significant, as the material had not yet been reviewed. Comey accused of politicizing investigation Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid on Sunday suggested Comey was using his position to influence the election and, in doing so, may have broken the law. In a letter, Reid also charged that Comey ignored requests to release "explosive information" the senator believes the FBI has about ties between Republican candidate Donald Trumps campaign and Russia. "By contrast, as soon as you came into possession of the slightest innuendo related to Secretary Clinton, you rushed to publicize it in the most negative light possible," Reid wrote. Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and nearly 100 former senior Justice Department officials and prosecutors also expressed concern in a letter about Comey's announcement and its timing so close to election day. "We cannot recall a prior instance where a senior Justice Department official Republican or Democrat has, on the eve of a major election, issued a public statement where the mere disclosure of information may impact the election's outcome, yet the official acknowledges the information to be examined may not be significant or new." WATCH: Clinton on Comey's decision The letter says the American people deserve to have all of the information released so they can get a "full and complete picture" of the situation. Trumps running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, defended Comeys decision to notify Congress, calling it "an example of real leadership." Comey on Friday sent a memo to FBI employees explaining his decision to update congressional leaders. While acknowledging that "we dont ordinarily tell Congress about ongoing investigations," Comey said he felt obligated to do so because he had testified before Congress that the investigation was completed. He also said he believed "it would be misleading to the American people were we not to supplement the record." Trump compares emails to Watergate Trump pounced on the latest FBI revelation as more evidence confirming one of his central campaign themes: that Clinton is untrustworthy. Campaigning in New Mexico on Sunday, Trump said the Clinton email investigation was "the single biggest scandal since Watergate." "A vote for Hillary is a vote to surrender our government to public corruption, graft, cronyism that threatens the survival of our Constitution itself," he said at a campaign stop Saturday in Colorado. WATCH: Trump on Clinton email scandal "Theres this constant cloud of corruption that follows Hillary Clinton around," said Trumps campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, appearing on "This Week," one of the televised Sunday political talk shows. "And for the FBI to make this remarkable move 11 days before the election means there must be something there." Emails discovered during sexting investigation The latest emails were uncovered in a separate FBI investigation of former U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. Weiner is accused of exchanging sexually explicit emails with a 15-year-old girl. A separate batch of emails that the FBI believes may be related to the Clinton probe was found on a computer allegedly shared by Weiner and Abedin. Weiner is a former congressman who resigned in 2011 after admitting he had exchanged explicit photographs and text messages with several women. He later ran for mayor of New York City, only to see that campaign spoiled by evidence that he was again engaging in sexting. After federal authorities began investigating Weiner for allegedly exchanging explicit messages with an underage girl, he and Abedin separated. WATCH: Furor Builds Over FBI Email Bombshell Revelation puzzles Democrats The Clinton campaign and Democrats were delighted when Comey said in July that the FBI's investigation into Clinton's "sloppy" handling of emails when she was secretary of state would be closed with no criminal charges. But the possibility that the probe could be reopened has got Democrats perplexed. Its pretty strange to put something like that out, with such little information, right before an election, Clinton said. Its just extremely puzzling, said vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine, also appearing on "This Week." "I just have no way of understanding these actions. They are completely unprecedented." In an interview with CBS's "Face the Nation," taped before the Comey announcement and broadcast Sunday, Vice President Joe Biden said Hillary Clinton faces what he calls a "double standard" when it comes to trustworthiness. "Hillary said herself... 'Look, I'm not that good a candidate,'... and a lot of it has to do with personal style. She is more measured and she makes fewer mistakes than I make or most people I know. It doesn't go to her integrity or honesty. It goes to her style." Millions of Americans already have cast early ballots in states across the country. What effect the FBI announcement might have on turnout is unclear, but polls showed a tightening race between Clinton and Trump even before Fridays announcement. A state-backed news agency in Ethiopia reports that about 2,000 people detained during recent protests have been released after receiving what the report called education and counseling services. According to the Fana Broadcasting Network, Ethiopias Minister of Defense Siraj Fegessa told reporters that rehabilitation services for about 2,000 people detained over recent violence have concluded and those people have been released. Government spokesman Getachew Reda told reporters last week that the rehabilitation programs help the government deal with the large amount of people in detention. Probably this is the only government in the world that metes out punishment in the form of constitutional classes. Some fitness exercise maybe. Its only the most dangerous criminals who will have to face the consequences. Otherwise, this is going to be rehabilitation programs, three weeks, a month. You teach them constitution. You teach them some values and the ABC of basic decency, he said. But international human rights groups have a different take. Human Rights Watch said in a statement Monday that rehabilitation is a euphemism for short-term detention and that these programs typically involve ill-treatment and sometimes torture. HRW says there is no due process or formal record of these detentions. The rights group says tens of thousands of people have been detained since anti-government protests began in November 2015. A deadly stampede and violent attacks on government buildings and foreign businesses prompted the declaration of a six-month state of emergency October 9. There are no independently verified reports on exactly how many people have been detained since then. Opposition leader Merera Gudina of the Oromo Peoples Congress says hundreds of his party members have been arrested. Mostly they dont have legal advice, lawyers and so on. In fact, sometimes we dont know where they are detained. Its not normal prison, you know. In Shashamane, we heard that they were detained in cinema house. So they were detained anywhere. Not in normal prison house," said Gudina. The protests started in the Oromia region last year over a plan to expand the capital city but have since expanded to other parts of the country and to include issues of economic marginalization and political freedom. Indonesia is filled with counter-extremism programs, but one major criticism of them is that anti-radicalism efforts from moderate Muslim groups like Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) target those who would probably not get radicalized in the first place. But one group, former terrorists who fought with the Afghan mujahideen in the 1980s, has been working in recent years to address more vulnerable populations. Indonesias self-styled Afghan alumni are men with radical sympathies who fought with Afghan rebels in the Soviet-Afghan War. When they returned home, they joined domestic militant groups like Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), founded in 1993. New priorities But after decades of terrorism and multiple prison stints, many of the roughly 300 alumni had different priorities. So in 2011, nine ex-combatants set up the Forum Komunikasi Alumni Afghanistan Indonesia, or FKAAI, to stem the radicalization of younger Indonesians. By September of 2011, there had been several acts of terrorism in Indonesia, which, in our opinion, were not in accordance with Islam, Ahmad Sajuli, the FKAAI chairman, told VOA. We wanted to establish a forum so that we could explain to people that those acts of terror were not true jihad. Sajuli and his friends came up with the idea for FKAAI after attending de-radicalization workshops for former prisoners run by Nasir Abbas, the famous JI terrorist turned government adviser, and Sarlito Sarwono, a psychology professor at the University of Indonesia. After several former fighters went through our post-prison workshops in Jakarta, they wanted to do more for the community, Abbas told VOA. They realized they needed to do something to promote peace and minimize other terrorists actions. Abbas and Sarwono helped the nine founding members of FKAAI register the forum as a non-profit, establish its internal structure, and connect with the BNPT, the national counterterrorism agency. And then they stepped back. We do appreciate what they were willing to do all by themselves, said Abbas. They were never asked by anyone to set up something like the Forum. Growing effort FKAAI which now has 40 members throughout Indonesia, is headquartered in Menteng, an upscale Jakarta suburb. It holds a discussion group for members after Friday evening prayers. The BNPT also sponsors forum members to travel to schools in cities like Aceh and Poso, delivering speeches against extremism to vulnerable youth. The small courtyard has attracted waves of radicals through the years: in 2015, the mosque right next to FKAAI headquarters, Masjid Al Fataa, was infiltrated by IS supporters. One FKAAI member is Farihin bin Ahmad, the groups PR manager who is now 50 and has immaculate jihadist credentials. He spent three years in Afghanistan, was later very active in JI in Indonesia and he a hand in the 2000 Philippines consulate bombing in Jakarta. He also did time in prison and few understand the appeal of jihad more than he does. And yet, hes entirely dismissive of the so-called Islamic State. Its useless. Dont waste your time, is my message to young people, he said. For FKAAI members like Farihin, theres a huge gap between their jihad in Afghanistan and the activities of the current self-styled Islamic State. What we did in Afghanistan was not radicalism, Farihin told VOA. We were helping Muslims who were oppressed by the government. In contrast, he said, the Islamic State has dubious religious credentials. ISIS and [ISIS leader Abu Bakr] al-Baghdadi laid claim to a caliphate whose authority is not recognized by mainstream clerics, said Farihin. Return to normal Besides undermining the appeal of IS, FKAAI members also talk candidly about the stigma they faced when returning to civilian life as ex-terrorists. Sajuli said he returned from stints in Afghanistan and Malaysia without a penny to his name, and struggled until he finally found his footing, in middle age, as a kebab seller. This kind of detail, about the difficulty of returning to civilian life after sowing terror abroad, is rare in counter-extremism messaging. And it may be uniquely effective, since it helps puncture the mythology of foreign jihad. Being former jihadists, the ex-terrorists have added value in the eyes of their ex-terrorist comrades, as well as lay Muslims like the university students who are our and the BNPTs target for counter-radicalization programs, Professor Sarwono told VOA in an email. Farihin says FKAAI specifically does not associate with moderate Muslim movements like NU and Muhamadiyya because, while they do good work, they are too mainstream. Young people listen to me because I was an actor in and witness to foreign jihad, he said. We dont have much in common with groups like NU. Sujani says the students hes met so far have responded very positively to FKAAIs anti-radicalism messages. After sharing my experiences with young people, both in high schools and Islamic boarding schools, my conclusion is that they have the knowledge to understand the threat of radicalism, he told VOA. When these young people see such activity, they try to avoid it. Lone wolf One limit of FKAAIs efforts is that they have limited resonance with the lone wolf actors that are now typical of the IS brand of terrorism, according to Sarwono. Ex-Afghan fighters are no longer the majority of imprisoned jihadists. Today there are pro-ISIS terrorists and lone wolves, who self-radicalize through the internet, who have no relationship with the ex-Afghan fighters, he told VOA. He said they are disinclined to listen to anybody except their own leaders, and largely through social media. Despite this structural obstacle, said Sarwono, FKAAI members have unusual clout among students because of their jihadist past. Both Farihin and Sujani bring surprising levity to their work. Terrorism is not a new phenomenon, per Sujani. Back when I was active, they didnt even call us terrorists, he said. We were all anarchists! By their account, extremism is a cyclical problem that can be intelligently addressed. What the Afghan alumni hope is their voices can help break the cycle. Democrats and one prominent Republican accused FBI Director James Comey of wielding his authority for political purposes after Fridays announcement that the FBI is reviewing a new batch of emails that could shed light on Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clintons handling of sensitive information as secretary of state. The allegations pertain to the Hatch Act, a longstanding U.S. law that bars federal employees from engaging in partisan political activities while on the clock and prohibits using federal agencies to sway an election. In a letter to the FBI, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid accused Comey of tarring Secretary Clinton with thin innuendo and demonstrating what appears to be a clear intent to aid one political party over another. While the Nevada Democrat said Comey may have violated the Hatch Act, a prominent Republican formally accused the FBI director of misconduct. Director Comey allowed the FBI to be manipulated into releasing this information [about additional emails] shortly before the election, Richard Painter, who served as the White Houses chief ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, told VOA. This is an extraordinary violation [of the Hatch Act], and the FBI should never have allowed itself to be used this way. Watch related video report from VOA's Zlatica Hoke: Painter, who teaches law at the University of Minnesota, has filed complaints with the Office of Special Counsel, which investigates Hatch Act violations, and with the Office on Government Ethics. The FBI has not responded to Painters allegations, and confirmed without comment that it received Reids letter. At the White House, spokesman Josh Earnest said President Barack Obama doesnt believe that Director Comey is intentionally trying to influence the outcome of the election. That view was echoed by some legal scholars. Comey simply informed Congress that there was continuing investigation into the emails, said George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley. Someone can certainly question the timing or even the means of this disclosure, but it is not a violation of federal law. Turley acknowledged that the Justice Department has a policy of not releasing information concerning ongoing investigations or information that could impact an election, but added, That policy is not a vow of silence. And, Turley said, Comey faced a no-win situation. He could have been accused of a violation of omission or commission. If he had withheld this information and it turned out to be significant, many people would have blamed him after the election, the law professor said. Instead, he erred in favor of a very limited disclosure. It is precisely the limited nature of Comeys disclosure that has riled the Clinton campaign: revealing the existence of new emails but providing no indication as to what they contain or whether they illuminate Clintons handling of classified information as secretary of state. Leaving the American public in suspense days before the November 8 elections is, according to Painter, a completely unjustified action that can only be used for political purpose, and thats a violation of the Hatch Act. The United States is not alone in barring government workers and agencies from official actions to impact elections. This kind of provision is common in many countries, said Kevin Casas-Zamora, director of the Inter-American Dialogues rule of law program. A different question is whether it is enforced rigorously. And there you find very significant differences. Zamora said Comeys actions are startling to many in Latin America and beyond who view the United States as a nation where government officials scrupulously avoid even the appearance of swaying an election. That this kind of decision was made by the FBI director barely days before the election this is the kind of thing that happens in banana republics, places where the state apparatus and law enforcement institutions are put to the service of partisan interests. History will be the judge, Turley said. He [Comey] decided to err on the side of disclosure, because this was already a matter that was being followed by Congress and followed by the public. I dont think anyone is seriously suggesting that he favors one party or the other. The Hatch Act, also known as An Act to Prevent Pernicious Political Activities, was passed in 1939. The Office of Special Counsels website says the law aims to ensure that federal programs are administered in a nonpartisan fashion, to protect federal employees from political coercion in the workplace, and to ensure that federal employees are advanced based on merit and not based on political affiliation. The prize is close. In a village just two kilometers from Mosul, the head of Iraq's Special Forces, General Talib Shaghati, held an impromptu news conference with several reporters to announce good news for more than a million civilians trapped in the Islamic States last major urban stronghold in Iraq. With the thud of mortars landing in the background, plumes of black smoke billowing on the horizon, and a warplane roaring overhead as it struck an IS position, the general pledged, to "clear Mosul of terrorists very soon." He confirmed some of his forces have now entered Karama, a neighborhood just inside the city. Shaghati urged Mosuls mainly Sunni Muslim civilians to remain in their homes and to avoid going near IS buildings in the besieged city where, two years ago, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared his Sunni caliphate straddling Iraq and Syria. Surrounded by black-clad soldiers, some wearing face masks and cradling AK-47s in their arms, the general spoke about how well coalition forces are coalescing in the fight against IS. Ominously, though, some of his men had hoisted a Shiite flag on a military truck right by him, and in the nearby wrecked Christian town of Bartilla, recaptured from the jihadists 11 days ago after a fierce days-long battle, several Shiite banners fluttered Monday above ruined buildings. An hour before Gen. Shaghati spoke to VOA and other reporters, coalition cooperation seemed in short supply at a checkpoint four kilometers from Bartilla on the main Mosul-Irbil road, where a brawl broke out between Kurdish peshmerga fighters and mainly Arab Iraqi commandos. Tempers flare The allies threatened to shoot each other as they drew their weapons amid angry shouts and an exchange of abuse. No shots were fired, cooler heads prevailed, but the flare-up scattered dozens of Christians who had been waiting impatiently for hours to be allowed to visit their homes in Bartilla and who had been blocked at the berm-protected checkpoint by the Iraqi military from doing so to their distress and rising anger. The peshmerga were frustrated, too, at the rough commands of their Iraqi counterparts. Shiite music blaring from a couple of Iraqi Humvees that were waved through the checkpoint aggravated tensions between Kurds, Christians and the mainly Shiite fighters of the Iraqi Special Forces. "The Iraqi military is blocking our people from getting inside Bartilla," Romio Hakari, head of the Christian Bet-Nahrain Democratic Party, told VOA. "They say it is because of security problems and of danger but that is only partly true," he added, acknowledging there remains the menace of booby-trap bombs and unexploded ordnance, as well as fierce fighting in the nearby villages of Bazwaya and Gogjali right on the threshold of Mosul. But he added, "There is an underlying mistrust and Christians fear what will happen to them and worry about the future of our ancestral towns." Christian towns Those fears have mounted with the flying of Shiite banners in towns like Bartilla, which Hakari deems "provocative." "Only the regular Iraqi army was meant to be here but it seems like there are many other forces," he said, including fighters, he claims, from the irregular Shiite militia Hashd al-Shaabi. Under an agreement brokered partly by U.S. officials, Hashd al-Shaabi militiamen are meant to be fighting only on the western and southwestern outskirts of Mosul, and only regular Iraqi army troops and peshmerga are meant to be present on the eastern front here at Bartilla. The peshmerga, under the agreement, are standing aside to let Iraqi forces take the battle into the mainly Sunni Muslim city. VOA could not confirm that Hashd al-Shaabi militiamen are present in the Christian towns of the Nineveh plains, but locals believe they are adding to their fears about whether they will ever be able to return to their homes or, if they are, whether they will feel safe. Christians had fled days and in some cases hours before IS fighters arrived in their towns and villages in August 2014. IS threatened to slaughter them. Most fled to the Kurdish capital of Irbil, settling in the Christian district of the city, Ankawa, in what ever accommodation they could find. Some Christians say they will return to live in the region especially if their towns and villages are incorporated into Kurdistan, but others are gloomier, arguing the days of Christianity here are over because the social fabric has been torn irreparably by IS. In conversation with nearly a dozen Christians at the checkpoint waiting to be allowed to visit Bartilla to salvage what they can, no interviewee expressed much confidence. "There are two problems," said Nimrud, a 54-year-old father of nine. "I would like to go back but I will only do so if we are protected, and if funds are supplied to help us rebuild otherwise it will be too difficult," he added. History, community Rami, a 27-year-old who left Mosul 10 years ago because of tensions with Sunni Muslims in the city, said he has had enough. "I have seen my house on TV and it has been destroyed. I dont think we will go back to live in the Nineveh plains; I dont think Christians have a future in Iraq," he said. Iraqi lawmaker Jamila al-Ubaidy, a Sunni Muslim, also expressed frustration at the checkpoint, where she, too, waited to visit her familys village on the outskirts of Mosul, saying, "People are worried and want to see what is left of their homes and to make sure more of their property isnt destroyed in the meantime." She isn't explicit, but she suggests local Christians and Sunnis are scared Shiite soldiers will loot whats left in their properties. Former US ambassador Alberto Fernandez, who has followed closely the travails of Christianity in the region, is pessimistic. "For Christians to feel safe there needs to be: security, autonomy [or local rule], and some sort of economic basis for living," he argued. "Traditionally the people of the Nineveh plains had close ties with Mosul and worked or traded with the city, so the whole fabric of life has been ripped apart. It is not impossible to recreate this social fabric, but it requires a care and commitment no one international community, Baghdad seem to have, he lamented. He added, "What is lost if these communities cease to exist in Iraq is not only a historic presence but a chance of creating a community of real diversity and tolerance. Iraq would just be a grimmer, more intellectually and spiritually impoverished place." Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi unveiled plans Monday to rebuild large swaths of mountainous central Italy, ravaged by the region's worst earthquake since 1980. Among the key provisions is the promise to provide shipping containers for people to live in while permanent housing is constructed. Renzi spoke in Rome, as the scope of Sunday's 6.6 magnitude quake became evident, and as emergency workers scrambled to provide immediate aid to thousands of residents already traumatized by smaller temblors last week. The same region was hit 10 weeks ago by a deadly quake that killed hundreds in the small town of Amatrice. "We will rebuild everything," Renzi vowed, describing the culturally significant areas northeast of Rome as "territories of beauty." No deaths or serious injuries have been reported, largely because so many residents of the region were relocated after the August 24 earthquake that rocked Amatrice, authorities say. However, an estimated 15,000 were left homeless. The epicenter of Sunday's quake was 70 kilometers southwest of the central city of Perugia and close to the town of Norcia, where already skittish residents saw churches and the 14th century Basilica of St. Benedict heavily damaged Sunday. A historic cathedral known for its 15th century frescoes also was destroyed. An estimated 4,000 people in and around Norcia have been relocated to hotels on the Adriatic coast, where they joined more than 1,000 others still displaced by the Amatrice quake in August. Renzi said the shipping containers will be in place by December, and he said residents can expect to have new wooden house construction completed by mid-2017. Tanzanias president is making his first state visit to Kenya since taking office last October, in a bid to improve relations strained by economic competition. Kenya is "quite important to Tanzania," President John Magufuli told reporters upon arriving Monday in the northern neighbors capital city, Nairobi, for a two-day visit. Magufuli cited data from the Tanzania Investment Center, which reports that 529 Kenyan companies have invested roughly $1.7 billion in Tanzania, creating employment for about 56,000 Tanzanians. Tanzania is the fastest-growing economy in East Africa, according to the International Monetary Fund. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said the countries would revive the Kenya Tanzania Joint Commission for Cooperation (JCC) before years end to enhance investment and trade. The state visit is meant to strengthen the relations between both countries, Kenyatta said, adding that if Kenya and Tanzania are to expand their economies and create jobs for youth, then the countries should walk together." Tension over Uganda pipeline Economic relations between the two nations have been somewhat strained by competition. In March, Uganda opted to run a large oil pipeline through Tanzania instead of Kenya. Uganda cited security concerns and a price tag that was $1 billion cheaper than the one proposed by Kenya. Tanzania also won a deal to host a new railway that will connect the Democratic Republic of Congo and the East African coast. And just last month, Tanzania pushed the six-member East African Community to delay signing an economic partnership agreement with the European Union, which would guarantee traders duty-free access to the EU market. Kenya supported signing the treaty. Besides Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, community members include Burundi, Rwanda and South Sudan, which joined this spring. Economic analyst Aly Khan Satchu of Nairobi-based Rich Management said this weeks state visit offers Kenyatta a chance to recalibrate relations with Magufuli after a series of setbacks. "Hes scored some big wins against Kenya," Satchu said of Magufuli, citing the oil pipeline and railway deals, so hes "a worthy adversary, somebody who obviously very focused on the Tanzania national interest. "But given the current situation," Satchu continued, "I think Kenya would be wise to try and sort of reset existing relations, look at what can be done to increase trade and seek better alignment as the East African Community and the market open up." According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, Kenya is Tanzanias largest trading partner in Africa. Former Lebanese Army Commander and long-time aspirant to the countrys presidency, Gen. Michel Aoun, was elected to fill the top post after a two and a half year political void. His election by parliament came after a consensus agreement among top political leaders. Aoun secured 83 votes in the 128-seat chamber when MPs convened for their 46th attempt to choose a head of state. In the first round of voting on Monday, Aoun failed to secure a two-thirds majority among the 127 MPs present. Both a second and third round of voting - in which he required a simple majority to win - saw 128 ballots cast, forcing the election into a fourth round. The countrys top Christian and Muslim political leaders, however, appeared to cast aside their differences in agreeing to Gen. Aouns election. The leader of Lebanons Hezbollah group, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, said he continued to support long-time ally Gen. Aoun last month, and Christian rival Samir Geagea came out in favor of Aoun several months ago. The generals final hurdle towards the presidency was reached several weeks ago when top Sunni leader and former Prime Minister Saad Hariri threw his support behind him. Aoun addressed parliament briefly, following his election, and delivered a conciliatory speech, calling for unity among the countrys various religious and political groups: He said that Lebanon is sitting between landmines and is surrounded by the fires raging all around it in the region and that it is his priority to prevent any sparks from those fires from spreading to it. Lebanon, he insisted, must stay out of regional conflicts, following an independent foreign policy in accordance with its interests. In Washington, the State Department congratulated the people of Lebanon for the election. "This is a moment of opportunity, as Lebanon emerges from years of political impasse, to restore government functions and build a more stable and prosperous future for all Lebanese citizens," spokesman John Kirby said. Gen. Aoun was Lebanons military commander during the mid to late 1980s, becoming the countrys interim prime minister after parliament was unable to elect a successor to former President Amine Gemayel September 1988. He led a bitter and bloody War of Liberation against neighboring Syria, which at the time had troops stationed across much of the country. His ouster by Syrian-led forces in 1991 led to a lengthy exile in France. The newly-elected president returns to Lebanons presidential palace in Baabda, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, from which he was forced to depart close to 25 years ago. The palace, which he left in ruins, was rebuilt during the 1990s. One-time Christian political rival, Samir Geagea, who was also a candidate for the presidency, before withdrawing earlier this year, told Arab media that he believed that both he and Aoun now see eye-to-eye on most of the major issues: He said that at the end of the day, Gen. Aoun is a son of Lebanon and that he doubted there was be any major differences between himself and the general over essential issues of sovereignty or policy. Both Saudi Arabia and Iran, key power-brokers in Lebanon, appear to have agreed to the political arrangement leading to Aouns election in the days leading up to Mondays parliament session. Both countrys, however, are backing rival sides in bloody civil wars in Syria and Yemen in addition to major friction in Iraq. It is not clear, yet, to what extent they are willing to cooperate in Lebanon. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spearheaded renewed efforts Monday to bolster Libya's U.N.-backed government against continued chaos and a collapsing economy, but the meeting appeared to yield little more than an expression of support for the embattled Libyan leadership. Kerry and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson convened the gathering in London that included ministers from France, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, who met with Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj. The ministers reaffirmed what a State Department official said was "strong international support" for Libya's Government of National Accord, the U.N.-backed interim governing body that has thus far been unable to establish control outside the capital, Tripoli. Since the fall of longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi following a 2011 popular uprising, Libya has been divided by factional fighting. A government in the east of the country headed by General Khalifa Haftar has refused to recognize the GNA. Libya dependent on oil, gas "There is a crisis of legitimacy that is now much deeper than at the beginning of the civil war," said Wolfram Lacher, Middle East and Africa Associate at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs at a forum in London earlier this year. The crisis, along with the prospect of economic collapse, have deepened concerns about widening opportunities for Islamists in western Libya. Libya's economy is nearly entirely dependent on oil and gas exports and is on the verge of collapse after crude prices last year dropped to seven-year lows and production plummeted to a third of its pre-war levels as a result of factional fighting. "The ministers underscored their support for increasing the capacity of the GNA led by Prime Minister al-Sarraj to respond to the needs of the Libyan people," said State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau in a statement after the meeting Monday in London. There were no concrete proposals of aid, but ministers said technical talks will be held to follow up and implement their effort. U.S. airstrikes supported The meeting was held as Libyan government forces supported by a U.S. air campaign make gains in their efforts to wrest control of the coastal city of Sirte from about 100 Islamic State militants who reports say are holed up in the city. State Department officials said ministers meeting Monday in London noted the "important progress" the GNA and its allied forces are making in Sirte. The U.S. officials reaffirmed their "continuing and strong" support of al-Sarraj's efforts against Islamic State militants. The statements follow criticism by observers who note the operation to retake Sirte, launched in May, was originally expected to take a few weeks but, after several months, is still ongoing. Their days are still spent hunched over phones, playing video games and chatting to friends on WhatsApp. But life has changed dramatically for the nearly half-dozen Afghan migrants who arrived here last week from the muddy squalor of the so-called "Jungle" camp near the northern port city of Calais. Instead of rain-soaked tents, they now share small rooms with showers in a peeling motel abutting a highway 275 kilometers to the southeast. Dreams of Britain have shifted to the possibility of a future in France. We have to learn French and build a life here, said 28-year-old father of four Saber Sha, a former army truck driver from eastern Nangarhar Province. I want to bring my family here, because its not safe to stay in Afghanistan. The young men count among more than 5,000 migrants evacuated from the Calais camp and dispatched to towns and cities around France. On Monday, bulldozers are expected to finish demolishing the wood-and-tarp shanty town just across the Channel from Dover, but Frances larger migrant problem is far from over. Some 1,500 unaccompanied children remain in the Calais, as France and Britain squabble about their future. Other migrants have resettled under the French government plan, but many dream of returning to port city, their sights set on Britain. A European problem Hundreds also have headed to Paris, charities say, where makeshift tent camps have swelled dramatically in recent days. The government vows to demolish them this week, underscoring the shifting and durable nature of Frances migrant problem that has become symbolic of Europes unresolved crisis. Reims, the historic heart of Frances Champagne region, took in 29 Afghans and Sudanese from the Jungle. Local officials greeted the bedraggled group with cakes and hot coffee as they arrived by bus last Tuesday. We wanted to show were happy to receive them, said Philippe Wattier, director of the Salvation Army in Reims. The charity has been asked to help the migrants settle in and apply for asylum a step Wattier says, all want to take. Until now, the image theyve had of [the] French has been of people who have mistreated them, the police theyve clashed with, the misunderstandings, he added. It will take some time to build relationships. Months in Calais have left other scars. Three of the migrants have been hospitalized for possible tuberculosis. Others have scabies, lice and parasites. On Friday, several Afghans ventured out for the first time, stocking up on canned meat and vegetables at a Halal supermarket. They chatted with the Turkish staff in a language learned from months in Turkey awaiting passage to Europe. Haunting memories Abdul Wahid Niazi is still haunted by memories of the crossing to Greece on a rubber dinghy designed for five, but holding 25 instead. The boat in front of us capsized, he recalled. People were shouting, screaming. It was dark, so nobody could help them. Ten, wearing life jackets, were rescued the next day, but 16 drowned, he said. His own boat made the crossing intact. Niazi eventually made it to London, but fled a few years later when he faced expulsion. He spent time in Italy before heading to Calais, hoping to make another try for Britain. But today, he said, he has no regrets about leaving the Jungle. Gangsters went to tents at night and stole phones and money. Ive seen people stabbed, he said. The Afghans stayed safe, because they pitched their tents near one another. We couldnt complain to the police because they didnt care. A friendly welcome Coming to Reims was like a shock, he added. The people are very good, friendly. We have food. Ive never seen that here before. Throughout France, the Calais migrants have received a mixed welcome. Towns have been rocked by pro- and anti-migrant protests. Right wing mayors launched a campaign against taking them in. In Reims, tourists flock to sip champagne and visit the citys soaring cathedral where past kings of France were crowned. Residents have been calling charities to donate clothes for the migrants and volunteer their services. As long as they dont make trouble, I think we should welcome them, said 21-year-old arts student Julien Vallee. I think its good to dispatch them around the country and integrate them. Yet others have been hostile. A letter to the Salvation Army last week threatened to torch establishments sheltering the migrants. It said they were sick of us welcoming these no goods, these foreigners, Director Wattier said. These xenophobic, hostile attitudes fit into the current climate in Europe and also in the United States. He believes many of the new arrivals will have a good chance of receiving asylum. But the charity will prepare those who dont for the bad news. We have to be pragmatic, Wattier says. Were not selling dreams. The head of Mali's top Islamic body says insurgent group Ansar Dine has accepted a proposed cease-fire. Mahmoud Dicko, president of Mali's Islamic High Council, told VOA's French to Africa service on Sunday that he asked Ansar Dine for the truce and received a letter of acceptance from the group's leader, Iyad Ag Ghali. Dicko, in a phone interview, noted that Ghali's letter included a line saying Ansar Dine "rejects whoever rejects Sharia." It was not clear if Ghali was setting a condition for the cease-fire. Ansar Dine was one of three Islamist militant groups that took control of northern Mali in 2012. The groups were ousted in a French-led military operation the following year, but have since continued to attack civilian, military and U.N. peacekeeping targets in the region. The U.S. government named Ghali a "specially designated global terrorist" in 2013. Members of Nigeria's largest Shi'ite Muslim group say they still are being unjustly targeted by the Nigerian government and security forces, with 44 Shi'ite Muslims arrested last week as hundreds gathered in Jos, in the Nigerian state of Plateau, for a religious ceremony called the day of Ashura. Saifullah Kabir's mother was one of those arrested. "I visited her one time; that was last week, Kabir said. She said she don't know what offense she has done." Meanwhile, Kabir's two sisters, ages 16 and 14, are in police detention. Plateau state police spokesman Tyopev Terna says those detained were charged with public disturbance. Minors are being held in a cell in a police station while the adults, like Kabir's mother, are in prison. "They are with us on court order, Terna said. We are not the ones keeping them. It is the court that said they should be taken to prison. The prison said, help us with your facilities so we can keep them there. They are in safe hands. They are in a very good facility." The activities of Nigeria's largest Shi'ite group, the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, were recently banned in the neighboring state of Kaduna. For decades, the group has experienced tension with the Nigerian government and security forces. In December 2015, 347 Muslims were killed after a clash with Nigerian soldiers at IMN headquarters in the city of Zaria. "They killed women and children, said Ibrahim Musa, the spokesperson of IMN. They burned some alive. They destroyed properties. Our people were mercilessly killed and dumped into a mass grave." Musa, who spoke to VOA from an undisclosed location, has been in hiding since the Kaduna state government issued an order for his arrest October 7. Musa says he and other Shi'ite Muslims believe they are being targeted because of their faith and fear that radical Sunni Muslims are behind the attacks on Nigeria's Shi'ites. During a visit to Nigeria last week, the U.S. undersecretary of civilian security, democracy and human rights, Sarah Sewall, told VOA she is worried that what she calls a repression of faith could instigate a larger conflict in the future. "The United States has expressed its concerns and has raised these at the highest levels of the Nigerian government and military," Sewall said. Syrian opposition activists are urging the United Nations and the international community to push for the release of tens of thousands of detainees in Syria, calling it critical in efforts to revive the moribund peace process. A delegation of representatives of the Syrian Oppositions High Negotiations Committee has been meeting with U.N. Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Misturas team to demand real and tangible progress on this issue. This is not the first time the group has broached this subject. Former president of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces Khaled Khoja told VOA that the release of detainees in Syria was a crucial confidence-building measure in the peace process. He said resolving this issue would improve the atmosphere around the negotiating table. Making progress in this file, the detainees file will help us to improve the negotiation process and shift toward political solution with the other confidence-building measures like breaking the siege and providing humanitarian aid for the Syrian people. United Nations efforts to send relief convoys of food, medicine and other essentials to more than one million people trapped in 19 besieged areas in Syria have met with minimal success in the past months. The U.N. has been particularly frustrated in its attempts to send humanitarian convoys to help some 275,000 people in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, which has been under relentless bombardment by Syrian government, Russian and rebel forces for weeks. Leverage to restart political process Khoja said the delivery of aid to Aleppo, Damascus and other besieged areas, as well as the release of the detainees will be leverage to relaunch the political process again and start talking about political solutions. The Syrian Network for Human Rights, an independent, neutral, non-governmental organization has documented more than 110,000 Syrian detainees. It found that most - 91,000, including more than 2,700 children and nearly 5,700 women, were being held by the government of Bashar al-Assad. More than 11,000 others were under the control of Islamic State militants, opposition forces, the PYD Kurds, and the Al-Nusra front. The Network, which employs 24 staff and about 17 volunteers in Syria, said that 75 percent of the detainees were considered as enforced disappearances. The groups founder, Fadel Abdul Ghani, explained the warring factions deny any knowledge of them. They deny holding them. He said his group believed that twice as many people as those already documented actually have been killed or disappeared. He said investigators on the ground were in the process of recording their names and other vital data with families and friends. In the meantime, he told VOA that the struggle to prevent arbitrary detentions and to achieve the freedom of the detainees was continuing. Above the ground, we have shelling and bombing from the airplanes and from rockets and under the ground and inside the centers of detention, we have torture and we have starvation until death. Ghani said the Syrian Network has documented a monthly average of 50 to 60 cases of detainees being tortured to death. He accused Syrian President Assad of using the detainee issue as leverage to get his way in peace negotiations. Gateway to peace Member of the High Negotiations Committee Hind Kabawat said resolving the detainee problem would be a gateway to peace. She said it was essential that families learn the fate of their loved ones for the process to move forward. It is a big problem and we need to solve it. We need to give comfort for those families to say we are thinking about them. We need to do something. And there will be hope to know where their family members are. Kabawat, who is an attorney and assistant Professor at George Mason University in the U.S. state of Virginia said a future political solution for Syria and for transitional justice was dependent upon accountability. War crimes have to be punished. And, we need to know where are our detainees, what is happening to them. And we need to get concrete answers of what we can do for the future of Syria to have a just peace, Kabawat said. Since the outbreak of Syrias civil war in March 2011, about one quarter of a million people have been killed and half of Syrias population of 23 million have become displaced within Syria and as refugees in other countries. Members of the Syrian Opposition blame Russias alliance with Syrian President Assad for prolonging the war and leading Assad to believe that he could win the war militarily. They said as long as Russias escalation of air raids on Aleppo continued and civilians continued to die from indiscriminate bombing it was not possible to talk about a peaceful solution to this bloody war. UN, US singled out for criticism Khaled Khoja criticized the United States for letting the Russians lead the initiative and the United Nations for just monitoring the process. He said as long as that continued we cannot talk about any improvement in the political process. Actually, the Syrian crisis has become an international crisis and it needs an international approach. He said the regional and international countries have to accept responsibility for their part in exacerbating the war. Additionally, he said they bear responsibility to stop the bloodshed in Syria and help push the peaceful solution forward. He said this meant putting pressure on Russia, whether through the Security Council, imposing economic sanctions or by other means to prevent Russia from committing more war crimes inside Syria. Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic sought to reassure the public about his safety on Sunday, a day after the discovery of a weapons cache hidden near his home that forced police to evacuate him and his family from their residence. Vucic, speaking in Belgrade, cautioned against equating the weapons discovery with an assassination attempt, telling reporters: "Nobody touched me." The weapons, which included hand grenades, a rocket launcher, a sniper rifle and ammunition, were found in a trunk in bushes near a crossroads where Vucic's motorcade normally slows down while heading toward his home. Police on Saturday said the weaponry was first reported by a tipster. Serbia is overflowing with illegal weapons left from the Balkan wars of the 1990s, and it is not uncommon for people to discard those munitions to avoid having them discovered in their possession by police. Vucic said Sunday that pending DNA analysis likely will show whether the munitions were part of that surplus, or whether they pointed to something more sinister, as other top government officials have suggested. Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said a preliminary investigation shows the rocket launcher was used in fighting during the 1991-1995 Croatian war, and that the hand grenades came from Bosnia-Herzegovina, also the site of deadly fighting during that period. President Tomislav Nikolic described the weapons discovery as "very serious," and said Sunday that security officials must provide full details about the cache and how it ended up so close to Vucic's home. Saturday's discovery comes 13 years after then-prime minister Zoran Djindjic was assassinated by a sniper outside government headquarters in central Belgrade. Djindjic was the first democratically elected head of government in Serbia since the ouster in 2000 of nationalist leader Slobodan Milosevic, who later died in prison while on trial for war crimes stemming from the Balkan wars. South Korean President Park Geun-hye has vowed not to let a growing political crisis of confidence in her administration undermine the nations national security. Presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk told reporters on Monday the government will maintain a firm readiness posture under any circumstances. Amid the political turmoil the South Korean military this week began its annual Hoguk exercise involving the Army, Navy and Air Force. However, revelations regarding an influence-peddling scandal involving a longtime friend of the president have seriously damaged Parks hold on power and credibility with the public. Over the weekend Park fired many key senior officials and advisors in response to massive public protests and increasing calls for her resignation or impeachment. Chois puppet Choi Soon-sil, the shadowy figure at the heart of the presidential scandal returned to Seoul from Germany on Sunday, where she and her daughter fled in September when reports of misconduct first surfaced. Her lawyer, Lee Kyung-jae, said Choi is deeply remorseful that she had caused frustration and despondency among the public." Parks relationship with Choi dates back to the 1970s, during the time her father Park Chung-hee ruled South Korea for 18 years after coming to power in a coup. Chois father Choi Tae-min, a religious cult leader, became a mentor to Park while she was acting as first lady, after her mother was killed during an assassination attempt on her father. The two women also became close friends during this period when they were both in their 20s. During her public apology last week, Park said Choi had helped her with difficulties in the past. Choi is alleged to have exercised not just influence but cult-like control over President Park, even though she had no official government role, and to have exploited her personal relationship with the president to coerce large corporations to donate over $68 million, which she then embezzled. Choi, who has denied the allegations of wrongdoing, met with prosecutors on Monday. "I am so sorry," 60-year old Choi Soon-sil told reporters before the meeting. "I have committed an unpardonable crime." The disclosures have shattered Parks image as an incorruptible leader, a reputation that was reinforced by the fact that she is unmarried, estranged from her siblings and had until now no public ties to disreputable figures. With this scandal what we are seeing is that the president is being accused of basically being the puppet of a single person, or rather a single family, that she has done extensive things only for their own benefit and not for her own, at least to the publics knowledge, said Koo Se-wong, the editor of Korea Expose, an online Korean news and opinion site. North Korea Government documents found in a discarded computer tablet indicate Choi received confidential information on Japan and North Korea, raising concerns that she had undue influence over formulating national security policy. There are allegations that Choi was influential in setting Parks hardline positions to reject any engagement with North Korea, to close the jointly run Kaseong industrial complex after the Norths nuclear test in January, and to agree to deploy the American THAAD missile shield over the objections of Beijing. Choi had reportedly said she believed North Korea would collapse based on spirits that spoke to her. Analyst Bong Young-shik with the Yonsei University Institute for North Korean Studies says Parks association with Choi seriously undermines her ability to advocate for further international sanctions against the Kim Jong Un government or increased deterrence at home. Unless those accusations will be cleared, then the Park Geun-hye administration will not have sufficient political capability to engage in North Korea policy. It will just remain an uncertain, chaotic state, said Bong. Lame duck President Parks efforts to extricate herself from this crisis by apologizing and firing officials that may have facilitated Chois involvement have not eased public outrage. Park's approval ratings have plummeted in the wake of the scandal. At the same time, it will be difficult to force President Park from office before her term ends in 2018. Parks ruling Saenuri Party may ask her to leave the party to dissociate itself from the scandal. However her supporters in the National Assembly would likely try to prevent the opposition from mounting an impeachment trial that would bring out more damaging publicity. However Kim Jae-chun, a political science professor at Sogang University in Seoul, says Parks ability to govern has been seriously compromised, perhaps irreversibly so. As it is impossible for the President to lead a policy, it seems difficult to start a new policy on domestic as well as diplomatic policies, said Kim. Moving forward the best that Park can hope for, says Kim, is to be a caretaker to protect the present policies in place. Youmi Kim and Han Sang-mi in Seoul contributed to this report. The Committee to Project Journalists says 95 percent of the journalists murdered around the world over the last 10 years were local reporters. Yet, in its latest report, it says many of those responsible go unpunished. The CPJ says such impunity is one of the biggest threats to freedom of the press. CPJ consultant Elisabeth Witchel, author of the new Global Impunity Index titled "Getting Away With Murder," said South Sudan ranks among the top five countries where journalists have been murdered with impunity in 2016. "The situation is very dangerous, more dangerous than ever, she said. We're seeing journalists not just targeted for their work, not just from something they might be reporting on, but simply because they are journalists." And the threats are not just coming from one side. "It's not all government soldiers attacking journalists, Witchel said. We're seeing criminal groups that have become very powerful targeting journalists. We're seeing political groups like in South Sudan [where they] target journalists. South Sudan The report noted that in January 2015, five journalists were shot, attacked with machetes, and set on fire in an ambush in Western Bahr el Ghazal state in South Sudan. The journalists were in a political lawmaker's convoy when they were attacked. In September, a major South Sudanese newspaper was shut down by government operatives. In July, a local journalist was shot and killed in Juba when gunmen wearing government uniforms broke into the Terrain complex, which houses foreign and local journalists and aid workers. Somalia The worst country for the second straight year is Somalia, where the militant group al-Shabab is suspected of carrying out a majority of fatal attacks on journalists. Iraq and Syria rank second and third on the 2016 index. Witchel said they were surprised last year to see Somalia surpass Iraq, where a record number of journalists were killed, "and 99 percent of them with complete impunity." Between last year and this year, Witchel said there have been a few, slight improvements, which she calls encouraging, but added, "they are really very, very small." Having no consequences for the perpetrators sends a menacing message to the media and the entire country, according to Witchel. "You might start to see self-censorship, you see it become harder and harder for the media to cover important issues, and then that creates a huge information gap, she said. It makes it very difficult for countries like South Sudan that need to build a functioning civil society." More of the murdered journalists covered politics and corruption in their home countries than any other beat. In at least 40 percent of cases, the victims reported receiving threats before they were killed. According to CPJ, threats are seldom investigated by authorities and in only a handful of cases is adequate protection provided. In Turkey concern is growing over the police raid and arrests of journalists working at the country's oldest newspaper - one of the few remaining media outlets critical of the government. Hundreds gathered outside the headquarters of Cumhuriyet to protest the police raid on the paper and the arrest of its editor-in-chief Murat Sabuncu. The papers website said arrest warrants had been issued for more than a dozen people linked to the paper, including many of its leading writers. Among those detained was 72-year-old columnist Aydin Engin. Engin asked while being taken away by police why he was being detained. He said his writing for Cumhuriyet was reason enough. All those detained are accused of violating Turkeys ant-terror law and for giving support to the Kurdish rebel group the PKK or followers of Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen. Gulen is blamed by the government for being behind Julys failed coup attempt. Ensuring 'government's version' of news Emma Sinclair-Webb, chief Turkey researcher for U.S.-based Human Rights Watch, says the raid is an alarming development. "It's a very significant step, it shows the governments complete wish to crackdown on all opposition independent media in Turkey. Cumhuriyet being almost the last mainstream media organ to remain. And it means that basically there will be just one version of the news in Turkey and that will be the governments version." Police also raided the home of the former editor of the paper, Can Dundar, who last year drew the ire of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a report accusing the government of supplying arms to jihadist groups fighting the Syrian regime. Dundar left the country after being convicted of revealing state secrets. Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition Republican Peoples Party, condemned Mondays arrests and called on writers and intellectuals to come out and defend the paper. Dont forget that if you keep silent now, you will be next, he said. International condemnation The arrests have also drawn international condemnation. Rebecca Harms, leader of the Greens Party in the European Parliament, flew to Istanbul and joined protests outside the Cumhuriyet newspaper building. Harms in a statement said she planned to meet with government representatives. Mondays raids follows the closure over the weekend of 15 other media outlets, most linked to the pro-Kurdish movement, including Turkeys only newspaper published in Kurdish and one of the worlds few women's news agencies. Human Rights Watch's Sinclair-Webb says the broad language of Turkeys anti-terror laws gives the government a free hand against critics in the media. "Any news they (government) don't like they just say is serving the aims of one or another terrorist organization; there is no evidence of terrorism, there is no evidence of advocating violence." According to human rights groups, more than 100 journalists have been jailed since Julys failed coup and the introduction of emergency rule. The government defends the detentions saying they are in relation to terrorism and not for journalists' activities. A U.N.-backed commission assigned to investigate human rights violations in Eritrea is calling for a tribunal or a special court system to hear allegations of crimes by Eritrean leaders. A U.N. report alleged last June that the leaders of the Eritrean government have committed crimes against humanity over more than two decades. In its report, the commission of inquiry outlined evidence of forced disappearance, torture, indefinite imprisonment without trial and other inhumane acts including extrajudicial executions, according to Sheila Keetharuth, a former member of the three-person commission and the first U.N. special rapporteur appointed to the country. What we recommended among others ... an array of recommendations one of them being the referral to the [International Criminal Court], another one being that the African Union establish an accountability mechanism and there are things which could be used such as universal jurisdiction and other accountability [measures] in order for people of Eritrea who have suffered human rights violations to get justice, she told VOA. The work of the commission has ended and the report presented is now in the hands of the U.N. Human Rights Council. The commission chairman, Mike Smith, told VOA in June that the findings should pass to the Security Council because only the Council has the power to make referrals to the International Criminal Court. The commission of inquiry has been criticized for allowing anonymous testimony and lacking corroborating data or hard evidence. The commission gathered testimony from 833 Eritreans in 13 countries and received about 160 written statements in order to get the fullest picture possible. We have relied on primarily information from real victims of human rights violations and this has been done in confidential interviews, she said. Its very important that one needs to understand that these are confidential interviews because otherwise we would have put those who approached the commission with their stories or those we talked to in a situation where there are possibilities that reprisals would have been taken against them we looked at what was available and we made our conclusions based on that. Keetharuth also said the commission was denied permission to gather evidence in Eritrea, hampering its ability to operate. Eritreans divided over report At an October 27 U.N. meeting, Eritrean Presidential Adviser Yemane Ghebreab denounced the report and said that he sees little value in entering into a polemic with a clearly biased special rapporteur. Eritreans abroad remain divided over the findings of the report. Sirak Bahlbi, a government supporter and the ruling party organizer abroad tweeted victimizing Eritrea has become a blood sport for Sheila Keetharuth for the pleasures of the U.S. State Department, the European Union, and missions at the U.N. including the U.S., Germany and Britain. Jemil Aman was part of a demonstration by Eritreans in New York in support of the commissions report and its recommendation. The government is lawless and operating without a constitution, he told VOAs Tigrigna Service. Human rights are being violated, our children are exiled and are dying in the sea in thousands and their organs are being sold in the Sahara desert. This is all because of the [Eritrean] government and the regime. For the first time in at least two years, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his political team have met with several opposition leaders in attempt to defuse the countrys political crisis. The oppositions main demand is to revive a suspended a recall referendum that could lead to the ouster of President Maduro. Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets in recent days to support to recall effort. In the presence of international mediators, Maduro met Sunday in Caracas with five opposition leaders, including Democratic Unity coalition secretary-general Jesus Torrealba and opposition governor Henri Falcon. "We come here willing to listen and, hopefully, be listened to, and find points in the common interest of the great majority of the country, of the national interests. I think that this is not the time for long speeches but rather to assume a deep commitment, Maduro said during a televised ceremony live across Venezuela. U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Shannon travels Monday to Caracas, Venezuela, for a three-day visit, and will meet with senior government officials, members of the political opposition, and representatives of civil society. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that the visit is intended to show Washington's interest in the well-being of the Venezuelan people and support the ongoing dialogue process. The dialogue is part of a Vatican-led effort to defuse the countrys political crisis after Pope Francis met privately with Maduro. "The government and the opposition committed to lowering the aggressiveness in the language used in political debate," papal envoy Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli said. Recall referendum at issue Venezuelas electoral officials suspended the referendum effort earlier this month, alleging that fraud had taken place as signatures were being gathered to request the recall vote. Opposition leaders who attended the talks with Maduro threatened to boycott further meetings if their demands were not quickly met. "We are here also to demand an electoral solution to the crisis in Venezuela. There is a point in the document that, in diplomatic jargon, establishes the review of the electoral program, the electoral institutionality, and the respect and promotion of the electoral timetable in the constitution, the Democratic Unity coalitions Torrealba said during the meeting. That is the rescue of the recall referendum because what we are certainly discussing is the advancement of the presidential elections, that is what we are dealing with, that is what is on the table, what we are discussing, and also the topic of normalizing the country's institutional life that deals with reinstating the deputies from Amazonas, Torrealba added. Polls show if the recall referendum is reinstated, Maduro would lose the presidency. Maduro said blocking the referendum was an independent decision by the judicial and electoral authorities based on fraud allegations. He has distance himself from the issue. Maduros political opponents have accused him of staging a coup detat by stopping the effort to hold a vote to remove him. The U.N. humanitarian chief warned Monday that war-torn Yemen is "one step away from famine." Stephen O'Brien told the U.N. Security Council that more than 21 million Yemenis 80 percent of the population are in need of some form of humanitarian assistance. O'Brien gave the briefing by telephone from Bahrain, where he has arrived for a 10-day visit that also will include Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. He traveled to Yemen earlier this month. "Over 2 million people are malnourished nationwide, including 370,000 children who are severely malnourished," O'Brien said. That is an increase of 65 percent compared to the year before the conflict began. Food prices have surged 20 percent since fighting began last year, and a Saudi-imposed blockade has impaired food deliveries to a country that, before the conflict, imported 90 percent of its food stocks. In addition, cholera the often fatal water-borne diarrheal disease also is starting to appear, with 61 confirmed cases and 1,700 suspected cases in 10 governorates. O'Brien said the United Nations and its humanitarian partners are establishing 21 cholera treatment centers, but that they would be insufficient to stop the escalating spread of the disease. Additionally, the humanitarian chief said more than 10,000 children under the age of five have died from preventable diseases. Another factor that has led to the deaths of many children is the lack of immunizations and treatments for diarrhea and pneumonia since the Saudi-led coalition began airstrikes, as well as an air and sea blockade on Yemen in March 2015. Not mission impossible The U.N. has classified Yemen as a level three emergency Syria and Iraq are the only other two humanitarian crises rated this severe. "Saving lives in Yemen is doable," said WFP regional director Mohannad Hadi. "It's not mission impossible." He said more international support is needed to accomplish it. "There is no reason to lose one life in Yemen," Hadi added. The U.N. has appealed for $1.6 billion to reach 12.6 million people across Yemen this year, but has received just under half of the required funds. Political road map Iranian-backed Houthi rebels tried to seize power from the internationally-recognized president, Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi, in September 2014, leading to a Saudi-led aerial campaign to restore him to power the following spring. Since then, the U.N. says thousands of civilians have been killed and injured, and more than 3 million have been displaced from their homes. On Saturday, U.N. Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed put forward a road map for trying to arrive at a political resolution; both sides have rejected it. He said the framework is consistent with three elements: a U.N. Security Resolution from April 2015 that reiterated President Hadi's legitimacy, imposed an arms embargo on the rebels, and demanded they withdraw from all captured areas and turn in all seized arms; outcomes of the national dialogue; and an initiative from the Gulf Cooperation Council. He said the plan includes a set of sequenced political and security steps, conducted in parallel, which would help Yemen return to peace and an orderly political transition. "I am very disappointed by the fact that the two parties have expressed opposition to the road map," Ould Cheikh Ahmed told reporters. He said he had not received formal, written rejection of his plan, but had read statements both sides had made to the press. "The people of Yemen can no longer wait, because the situation is becoming disastrous," the envoy warned. He said the road map is just that, a guide, not a final agreement, and that the parties should use it as a starting point for discussions. He said he needs strong support from the Security Council for his road map and in demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities. Yemen's ambassador, Khaled Alyemany, said the government has made painful concessions for the sake of peace, while the rebels refuse to compromise. "Sustained peace will not be achieved by rewarding the coup masters for their coup and handing them the authority on a plate of gold," he said. Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has addressed the Federal Bureau of Investigation's announcement it has discovered new emails related to her use of a private email server while secretary of state, and is looking into the matter. Clinton appeared before reporters just hours after the announcement by FBI Director James Comey, who said new emails had turned up during a different investigation that could affect Clinton. Clinton called for the FBI to release all information pertaining to the probe. "We are calling on the FBI to release all the information that it has. Even Director Comey noted that this new information may not be significant so let's get it out." She also said she was "confident" that the additional scrutiny would not change the conclusion the FBI drew on her case in July. At that time, Comey said Clinton had been "extremely careless" to keep government emails on a private server, but that there was no evidence she had shared classified information with unauthorized parties on purpose and tried to cover that up. After the news of the investigation broke Friday, further reports linked the new evidence with the federal investigation of former U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner of New York, who is married to top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. Weiner is being investigated for "sexting" with an underage girl in North Carolina. He and Abedin are separated. Government sources said Friday that the FBI had discovered the new emails after it seized devices belonging to Abedin and Weiner. Clinton campaign manager John Podesta challenged Comey's "extraordinary" statement, which came in a letter written to senior legislators. Podesta said Comey "should immediately provide the American public more information," and added he was confident that the reopened investigation would clear Clinton of wrongdoing. Republican Party leaders rejoiced in what they saw as validation of their repeated complaints about Clinton's practice of handling government emails in a nonstandard fashion. "Nobody was aware this was coming," an official at the State Department told VOA, but the deputy spokesman, Mark Toner, told reporters the government agency would "certainly" cooperate fully with the FBI's inquiry. The FBI chief said he could not predict how long it would take to complete the new phase of the investigation. Trump, who was in New Hampshire when the FBI made its announcement, welcomed the news and said he hoped the bureau would "right the horrible mistake" it made in July. Trump claimed the Clinton email investigation was a scandal "bigger than Watergate," the political spying effort and subsequent cover-up that forced the resignation of former President Richard Nixon in 1974. On Capitol Hill, the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Paul Ryan, said the FBI's action was "long overdue." In a statement, he said the Clinton investigation was "the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators." Trump running mate Mike Pence commended the FBI "for having the courage to reopen the case." He was speaking Friday to a crowd of supporters in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, who chanted "Lock her up! Lock her up!" a common refrain targeting Clinton at Trump rallies. Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, told VOA the FBI announcement was highly unusual, coming just 11 days before the election. The FBI, he said, "has a policy not to release announcements or take actions right before elections. ... The only reason why the FBI would do that is if it felt there was credible information that would require further investigation. And this has to be more than just a hunch." Turley said the content of the emails must be "quite significant" for the FBI to break from its long-standing policy. As for how it will affect the outcome of the election, Turley said, both Clinton and Trump have hardcore followers who will not be budged even by news events. "The big question is how it affects independents, and more importantly, I think, for the Clinton campaign, is how it affects people [who are] just not going to vote," Turley said. He noted that Clinton's critics cite trust issues as a reason not to support her. "So, the campaign's been wrestling with that, to get people to vote even though the vast majority of them don't trust [Clinton,] don't believe that she's truthful," Turley added. "This type of thing falls right in the center of that controversy. Are these people still going to get up in the morning before work and [go] down to the election polls and vote when they already had misgivings about Clinton?" Clinton has said she used the private server rather than a more secure government server because it was more convenient for her. Critics say she was trying to shield her communications from the Freedom of Information Act. Although classified information turned up in email stored on her personal server, which authorities say was vulnerable to hacking, there was no evidence that she shared it with unauthorized parties on purpose and tried to cover that up. Steve Herman and Jesusemen Oni contributed to this report. Furor continues to build over Fridays FBIs announcement that it is reviewing a new batch of emails that could pertain to Hillary Clintons handling of electronic communication as secretary of state a case the FBI had closed months ago. Its just extremely puzzling, said Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine on ABCs This Week program. I just have no way of understanding these actions. They are completely unprecedented. Theres this constant cloud of corruption that follows Hillary Clinton around, said Republican Donald Trumps campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, also on This Week. And for the FBI to make this remarkable move 11 days before the election means there must be something there. The FBIs action, less than two weeks before Election Day, set off a political frenzy in part because the content and relevance of the emails are unknown and could remain so when Americans cast ballots on November 8. Its pretty strange to put something like that out, with such little information, right before an election, said Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, at a campaign event. Trump, meanwhile, seized on a chance to underscore a central line of attack on Clinton. A vote for Hillary is a vote to surrender our government to public corruption, graft, cronyism that threatens the survival of our Constitution itself, the Republican presidential nominee said. The latest emails were uncovered in a separate FBI investigation of the estranged husband of a top Clinton aide. On Friday, FBI Director James Comey informed members of Congress of the existence of new material and the bureaus intention to examine it. Democrats cried foul. It happens close to an election, which is in violation of normal Justice Department protocol, and it involves talking about an ongoing investigation, which also violates the protocol, Kaine said. And as far as we know now, Director Comey knows nothing about the content of these emails. We dont know if they are to or from Hillary at all. And so this is a distraction. The criticism from Democrats is a reversal from July, when they cheered Comeys conclusion that no criminal charges should be brought against Clinton for using a private email server in her home to store communications during her tenure as President Barack Obamas first secretary of state. Republicans suggested the new emails must contain something noteworthy precisely because of the FBIs unusual move. We dont know what the basis was for Mr. Comey making the decision, said the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Bob Goodlatte, on This Week. We do know they know something is there. Millions of Americans already have cast early ballots in states across the country. What effect the FBI announcement might have on turnout is unclear, but polls showed a tightening race between Clinton and Trump even before Fridays bombshell. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Saturday called the timing of the FBI's announcement that it was assessing new evidence in her email case "unprecedented" and "deeply troubling." At a campaign appearance in Daytona Beach, Florida, Clinton told her audience, "It's pretty strange to put something like that out with such little information, right before an election." Clinton later added, "We can't let this election, in the last 10 days, be about the noise and the distractions. It's got to be about what kind of country we want for ourselves, our children and our grandchildren." FBI Director James Comey said in a letter to lawmakers Friday that new emails had surfaced that were related to Clinton's case. He made the statement despite an FBI tradition of avoiding controversial actions in the days leading up to an election. Reports Saturday said U.S. Justice Department officials warned Comey that notifying Congress about the new material was not consistent with department practices. Accordingly, Comey sent a letter to FBI staffers, explaining the reason behind his unorthodox move. "We don't ordinarily tell Congress about ongoing investigations," he said, "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." Influencing the race The FBI announcement sparked criticism that the agency was intervening in the U.S. presidential race. While the emails have been detected, The New York Times reported that law enforcement agents have to get a court order to actually read them, a process that would certainly not be finished before Election Day. WATCH: Republican Trump Claims Evidence in Democrat Clinton's Email Probe Is 'Overwhelming' Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump on Saturday called this latest wrinkle in the email case "the lowest point in the history of our country." Trump spoke at a campaign event in the swing state of Colorado, saying, "A vote for Hillary is a vote to surrender our government to public corruption, graft and cronyism that threatens the very foundations of our constitutional system." He vowed that on Election Day, November 8, "we're going to change things." Political scientist Norman Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute told VOA that the timing of Comey's announcement was "stunning." "Clearly, there's no urgency in this matter," he said. "It's not going to be, very likely, sorted out for months. It doesn't seem, on the surface, to involve anything deeply nefarious. ... If you are going to announce it 11 days before the election, you have a deep obligation to be more forthcoming." Far-reaching implications Political historian Allan Lichtman said Saturday that Comey might have made the announcement to protect his own credibility, but that the results of his act reached far beyond the personal. "The tragedy here is, to save himself [from allegations that he hid new evidence], he has significantly biased a presidential election that is vastly more important," Lichtman told VOA. "This is going to set the course for the future of the country, not just over the next four years, but perhaps over the next generation. ... He has no business doing this." Lichtman, who is known for his accuracy in predicting U.S. election outcomes, would not speculate on whether the development would sway Clinton voters. He said the Clinton campaign had probably done the only thing it could do in response, which was to call for the release of all information about the case. Clinton made that call Friday, noting that "even Director Comey noted that this new information may not be significant, so let's get it out." "How do you respond to something that's so vague?" Lichtman said of Comey's announcement. "It may be that there's nothing there of any consequence, but we don't know and you can't draw any conclusions from the FBI letter." Lichtman also noted that the FBI had been unusually forthcoming on the Clinton case, while staying tight-lipped on allegations that Russia might be trying to influence U.S. elections by hacking into computer systems. 'Political act' by Comey Jason Johnson, a professor of political science and communications at Morgan State University in Maryland, told VOA he thought Comey was attempting to influence the election. "It is impossible to separate what this announcement is from a political act," Johnson said. "It is clearly an act on the part of the FBI director to have some impact on the presidential campaign. There is something to be said about caution, about discretion." Reports Friday revealed that FBI agents discovered the new emails during an investigation of former U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner of New York, who is separated from top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. The emails were reported to have been found on a computer used jointly by Abedin and Weiner. Weiner is under a separate FBI investigation for allegedly "sexting" with a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina, a crime that falls under FBI jurisdiction because it took place across state lines. The age of consent in North Carolina is 16; in New York, it is 17. Republicans rejoice Republican Party leaders were rejoicing in what they saw as validation of their repeated complaints about Clinton's practice of handling government emails in a nonstandard fashion. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tweeted Friday, "With FBI reopening criminal investigation, Democrats on the ballot must now be asked whether or not they still support @HillaryClinton." He also tweeted, "This development raises serious ?s about what records may not have been turned over & why, & whether they show intent to violate the law." Senator Charles Grassley, a Republican campaigning for re-election in Iowa, told reporters Friday that the email server had been "a real problem for the Clintons." Although he was one of the addressees on the FBI letter, Grassley said it was not the result of any request from him to Comey. WATCH: Democrat Clinton Calls Timing of FBI Email Probe 'Strange' Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, a ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Friday that she was "shocked" to read Comey's letter. "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," she said. She also noted the FBI's tradition of avoiding moves that might influence the upcoming election. "Today's break from that tradition is appalling," she said. Clinton has said she used the private server rather than a more secure government server because it was more convenient for her. Critics say she was trying to shield her communications from the Freedom of Information Act. Although classified information turned up in email stored on her personal server, which authorities said was vulnerable to hacking, there was no evidence she shared it with unauthorized parties on purpose and tried to cover that up. Jesusemen Oni and Elizabeth Chernoff contributed to this report. Unite at High Level Meeting in Whitehall A Unite the Union delegation will be heading to London today to attend a high level meeting at Whitehall with the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Mr Robin Walker MP. Unite's delegation will be lead by Victor Ochello Regional Officer, Christian Duo Unite coordinating official, and Frederick Martin executive committee secretary. Unite will be raising concerns that the exiting of the EU will have on Gibraltar and the important issue of the recently announced job cuts in the MOD. Photo: Jesse Grant/Getty Images Days off are rare for Abigail Spencer since she took on the role of Lucy Preston in Timeless, a big-budget NBC drama that finds her character traveling across history to the Hindenburg disaster, the Lincoln assassination, Nazi Germany, and soon, the Alamo. (She compares it to Doctor Who, with a buddy comedy like Three Amigos on the side.) The experience is akin to putting out a new film every week, though Spencer doesnt mind the chance to try out new costumes and personas in each new adventure. Every time we do an era, were like, This is the one. We found the era I was supposed to live in, she says. Then we start the next episode and were like, No, actually, this was the one. Spencers search for a favorite era is reminiscent of her trip through Hollywood, as the actress has slipped into a number of roles and genres. Shes been on everything from Mad Men and True Detective to Cowboys & Aliens and Burning Love. Before she leaped into Timeless, Spencer wrapped her performance as the brittle Amantha on the final season of SundanceTVs heartrending drama Rectify, which returns this Wednesday. Vulture caught up with Spencer to talk about why she jumped to network TV, why everyone keeps telling her to play a teacher, and why Amantha holds her cigarettes in a very specific way. How did you get involved with Timeless? It was really [series creators] Shawn Ryan and Eric Kripke. We were about to start our final season of Rectify and I had a month where, if I was going to do a pilot, I could. Shawn Ryan saw me do a pilot called Grace that Lesli Linka Glatter directed and Krista Vernoff created and obviously Lesli Linka Glatter and Shawn Ryan had worked together many times before [on The Chicago Code and other projects]. I guess he had kind of kept me in mind for stuff, because that pilot was from five years ago. So in this month where I was like, Oh, am I going to do a pilot? my manager got the script from them. It was the only pilot that she sent me. I read that day, and then four other actresses who were auditioning for the role of Lucy texted me, I just went in for this show. You have to play this part! I was like, What? You could play the part. They were like, No. When I read it, its you. Thats you. What was it about Lucy that felt specific to you? I always seem like Im from the past? [Laughs.] I think its a mix of a few things. I saw Lucy differently than other people did. I didnt want to play a hero; I wanted to play someone at the beginning of their journey. I wanted to play someone that leads with her intelligence, but also has a goofiness. If I could boil it down to one trait, I would just say shes just a person of very deep convictions. Im drawn to those characters. And I was drawn to the historical elements and Eric and Shawn. When I came in to meet with them, I was like, Are you sure you want me? And they were like, Yes and youll never be bored. Youre going to look like youre from a different era. That was definitely the clincher for me because I love the costume drama of it all. Im like, Yes! Give me all the period costumes! It must be exciting to come in each week and say, Im going to go to the 1940s or Im going to go to the 19th century. Well, its incredibly challenging for the crew. I would challenge any crew to be working harder than our crew right now because its never the same set. Its never the same costumes. Its never the same actors. We are making a new movie every week. I dont think there is anything else on television like it. Then, from the Lucy perspective, Im playing a character who has to put on whatever the era is and still hold her contemporary qualities and learn something new through the episode. The show doesnt ignore the idea that going back in time, especially in American history, means that things get worse if youre black or if youre a woman. I think its worse for the world. In last weeks episode, we were in Nazi territory and we hitched up with Ian Fleming, who wrote the Bond novels and was an undercover spy for the Allied resistance. Lucy doesnt know German, and she can only go undercover as a Nazi secretary. When we were shooting, I was just so divided. We had all authentic costumes I believe it was Hugo Boss who did the Nazi uniforms. To understand more about that era and that time period and the people behind it I feel honored to even dip my toe in and have a greater understanding. Ive read that there are Bill and Teds Excellent Adventure references in Timeless. Are there other clues hidden in the show? All the three main characters names are all Bill and Ted references. Thats Erics wheelhouse, Ive discovered. Every name that comes up, every place that we go, he uses them as opportunities to create fun scavenger hunts for the audiences. I didnt get it at all. Malcolm [Barrett], who plays Rufus, he nailed it right away. After our first table read, he was like, So these are all Back to the Future and Bill and Ted references, right? And Eric was like, What! Nobody else has gotten that but you! Youve done all sorts of projects, from network to cable to movies. Coming out of Rectify, why did you decide to do a pilot? I had never been a lead of a network show before. I felt like, well, that would be a really interesting challenge because thats a whole other world and audience. I felt that, too, in comparison to a lot of the film roles. There were some scripts that I read that were wonderful and I would have loved to have been a part of, but the character that was available to me would not have been the center, the way into the world. I also thought that it was inspiring to see a historian hero. I mean, The teacher is the hero? The professor is the hero? Im a big fan of teachers. [Laughs.] My mother was a teacher. You were asking earlier why people thought of me for this part maybe everyone thinks I should just be giving them lessons all the time. Both you and Clayne Crawford, whos now on Lethal Weapon, went from Rectify to big network shows. Did you talk about that decision together? I think we felt a camaraderie in making that decision. We talked about it a lot when we were making the decision to sign on to these shows, then when we shot the pilots, and now the shows are coming out. Hes been a great confidant and a great friend. Its a very similar journey that were on. Were very similar actors, too. We have very similar stories and were both from the South. What was it like to return to Rectify and shoot the final season? Any time I get to act with that troupe of actors is just so wonderful. I think Ray [McKinnon, creator of Rectify] considered us more of a summer stock troupe. Every year we get together and we make this thing and its untouched by anybody else. Were just making Rays vision. I feel like Im about to start grieving the fact that next year I wont be able to do that again, because it was a part of my life. Im just overwhelmed with gratitude that Ray trusted me enough to play Amantha, because it totally deepened and shaped my work and my artistry. It made me a better human and a better actor. When Rectify comes back, where do we find Amantha? She spent so much of her life on Daniel. Now that hes accepted this plea deal, what does that mean for her? This is the first time that weve picked up on Rectify several months later. Every season picked up an hour later from the previous. Now, were deeper into their journey. Amantha stayed put. Daniel left and shes still there and shes got a job and shes disconnected from her family. Shes become a bit of a loner. Amanthas a little depressed. I think that youre seeing someone who isnt sure what the next move is. Now that the calm of that storm has passed and its not her job to take care of Daniel anymore, who is she without that? I dont know if Amantha is going to stay in Paulie forever, but she has to make peace and forgive that town before she can actually make real change in her life. Amantha smokes her cigarettes in such a distinctive way. How did you figure out how she would smoke? I had never smoked before playing Amantha. I thought it was going to be my kryptonite. I was cast as Amantha and then I was also going to another movie where I played someone who smoked. I didnt want to smoke like people Id seen in the movies. I think its a deeper need and I think Amanthas been smoking since she was 12. So I was driving around Los Angeles one day and I saw this girl in Silver Lake walking down the road with a Rite Aid plastic bag and she was smoking a cigarette and I went, Her! Thats the girl. I was like, I bet shes from the South or the Midwest. I bet shes been smoking since she was 12. Id never seen anybody smoke like that. It felt just a part of her. I rolled up to her in my silent Prius, which is even creepier because you cant hear me approaching, and I rolled down the window and I called out, Hi! Im so sorry. Im not a creepy person even though Im doing something really creepy right now. My name is Abigail and Im an actress I know, I know, I know and I am developing a character right now, Im preparing to play this role and I love the way that you smoke. Do you mind if we just sat down right now and you talked to me about your history with smoking? We sat on the curb in Silver Lake and she taught me how to smoke. She talked about her life. She had been smoking since she was 12. She was from the Midwest. Shed come out to L.A. to become a makeup artist and she was so generous and so kind. That was my first cigarette. I shared it with her and that started my exploration. I really started interviewing people. I was like, How do you smoke? How do you smoke? How do you smoke? Everybody had such specific and passionate reasons. And then I realized, Oh, Amanthas just going to have her own way that she smokes and thats just going to be it. And thats the story. This interview has been edited and condensed. William Friedkin Photo: Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images Tonight, after youve retired your inevitable David S. Pumpkins costume, hop under the covers with a flashlight and this creeptacular Vanity Fair story by William Friedkin, director of 1973s The Exorcist. Friedkin attended an actual exorcism in Italy earlier this year as the guest of 91-year-old Catholic priest Father Amorth, otherwise known as the Dean of Exorcists. Friedkin watched as Father Amorth performed his ninth exorcism on Rosa, a beautiful young woman who was allegedly cursed by her brother and his girlfriend, a witch. And yes, you read that right: nine exorcisms. Apparently the Devil is a stubborn fellow, which makes us wonder how poor little Regan McNeil rode out the rest of the 1970s (but we digress). Friedkins firsthand account of Rosas plight, which also goes into pretty fascinating detail about Father Amorths career and life, is full of fun, fast-paced, and spooky details (and plenty of all-caps Latin). A sample: Another voice from deep within [Rosa] shouted in his face: DONT TOUCH HER! DONT EVER TOUCH HER!! Her eyes were still closed. Father Amorth yelled, CEDE! CEDE! (Surrender!). Incredibly, this was also 81-year-old Friedkins first ever real-life exorcism 43 years after his filmic version was released in theaters. Doubtless there was a lot less cranial rotation and pea soup than he might have expected. the inside game What Obama Is Doing Behind the Scenes to Help Democrats Win What Obama Is Doing Behind the Scenes to Help Democrats Win Snow White and a Forest Friend. Photo: Disney Disney is doubling down on its commitment to live-action remakes of its classic animation features, this time with Snow White. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the script will likely land in the hands of Erin Cressida Wilson, who adapted The Girl on the Train from the best-selling novel. Does this mean that the wicked queen will not only consult a mirror in her obsession with Snow White, youth, and beauty, but also find solace in the bottom of a bottle as well? Probably not, but its still an interesting choice for the script. Oh, and it will definitely be a musical, with lyrics handled by La La Lands Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (whose hit musical Dear Evan Hansen is also about to jump from Off Broadway to Broadway). This is the third recent take on Snow Whites story, but the first time Disney will remake the 1937 version of the tale directly. The announcement follows earlier live-action plans for Beauty and the Beast, Mulan, The Lion King, and Aladdin, all of which are set for release over the next few years. Were not sure whats up over at the Disney Vault, but it feels like a copy of Fantasia might have fallen on the green-light button. Maybe someone should go check? Photo: Universal Pictures Each month, Showtime adds new movies to its library. Below, youll find our November recommendations. For more comprehensive coverage of the best titles available on Showtime and elsewhere, check out Vultures What to Stream Now hub, which is updated throughout the month. Doesnt anyone knock anymore?: Fast Times at Ridgemont High Yeah yeah, Spicoli! Phoebe Cates! But Amy Heckerlings seriocomic teen dream has vaulted to legendary status not just because of stoner quotes and red bikinis. Theres also the bold way the film handles stories like a young womans abortion, never afraid to keep things honest and messy for its audience. Even the good teen movies today, like The Edge of Seventeen, still feel like theyre holding truth back when stacked next to this. Available November 1. The American myth: Born on the Fourth of July Oliver Stone is back in vogue, thanks to Snowden and the new career retrospective by Vultures own Matt Zoller Seitz. Check out one of the early films that put him on the map, with a revelatory lead performance from Tom Cruise as a young Marine in Vietnam who finds his most deeply held beliefs shaken to the core not only by becoming paralyzed in battle, but also by the way hes received back home. After voting in the election, you may find this is an essential way to put our national character into some much-needed perspective. Available November 1. Going viral: Zero Days The latest documentary out of the Alex Gibney factory is about Stuxnet, a malicious Frankensteins monster of a computer virus originally designed by the U.S. and Israel as a weapon of cyberwarfare, before it mutated hideously out of control. At a time when we cavalierly discuss state-sponsored hacking like its some big joke, its not a bad idea to remind yourself just how fragile our global digital infrastructure truly is. Available November 19. November 1 After (2012) American Wedding (2003) Bang Bang Baby (2014) Big Significant Things (2014) The Bleeding (2009) Born on the Fourth of July (1989) Cecil B. Demented (2000) The Entitled (2011) Erin Brockovich (2000) Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) Freedom (2014) Good Advice (2001) The Honeymooners (2005) Internal Affairs (1990) The Ladies Man (2000) Meskada (2010) The Next Hit (2008) Paid in Full (2002) Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000) Santa Claws (2014) November 4 One & Done/Ben Simmons (2016) November 19 Zero Days (2016) Photo: Ron Galella/WireImage Yesterday, Willow Smith posted on Instagram a drawing of a few peaceful Native Americans facing off against a formidable force of tanks, guns, and big money with the hashtag #nodapl, which is only the teens latest attempt to draw attention to the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline. The pipeline is set to bring crude oil through the Standing Rock Sioux reservation. Earlier in the week, Willow and her brother, Jaden, were among the crowds picketing the construction site in North Dakota with signs reading Protect Our Water. The pipeline could stand as a threat to the water supply of the treaty-protected reservation if there were a spill. The siblings were not reported to be among the protestors arrested, like Shailene Woodley, but Willow shared her political stance on the issue through a series of social-media posts. Check it out below. #nodapl // A post shared by =GWEELOS= (@willowsmith) on Oct 29, 2016 at 2:33pm PDT Waco City Council will get details Tuesday on the costs and design of Catalyst Urban Developments proposed signature Brazos Promenade project on city-owned riverfront. The 3 p.m. council work session at the Waco Convention Centers Bosque Theatre will be the first public discussion of public funding for the project, City Manager Dale Fisseler said. The incentive package likely would include millions of dollars from the downtown Tax Increment Financing Zone and an economic development grant. The TIF board is set to consider a recommendation on the incentives at its noon meeting Nov. 4 on the third floor of City Hall. Fisseler declined to give an estimate of the requested amount, which he said is still in negotiation. But he said the city likely would pay for the creation of public spaces, infrastructure, a parking garage, landscaping and sidewalks along streets, and the removal of contaminated fill dirt around the 12-acre site. The cleanup could be as much as $8 million, though were still working with the (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality) and it could be half that, Fisseler said. We have to clean that up regardless, if its going to be developed. Dallas-based Catalyst is proposing destination restaurants, 265 living units and 44 units of flexible live-work spaces that would ultimately becomes shops or cafes. A full-service hotel is planned for the second phase, which could begin as early as 2017. Fisseler said the hotel is very likely to happen. The Brazos Promenade will be a destination because of its walkable urban environment, restaurants, hotel and public spaces, including an enhanced Waco Downtown Farmers Market and yet-to-be-determined public spaces along the river, Fisseler said. Theres going to be public meetings to figure that out, he said of the riverfront spaces. Fisseler said those meetings likely will be in January, well after the councils votes in December for incentives, long-term lease and a development agreement. Fisseler said the public spaces along the river will help make the development an anchor of downtown and the river corridor. The idea is that a student could walk all the way from Baylor campus to downtown or keep going to Cameron Park and feel safe and have amenities along the way that make it exciting, he said. As first-time voters cast their ballots in this years presidential race, McLennan County teachers say they are finding it hard to have political discussions with students when candidates Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton have made multiple controversial headlines. Trump has faced allegations of sexual assault and an audio recording of him bragging about sexual assault, and Clinton is being investigated for leaking classified information through a personal email server. Early voting is open locally through Friday, and Election Day is eight days away on Nov. 8. Ive told my kids, in politics, its not always clear, said Wendy Moulds, a Waco High School government teacher. In addition to that, I ask them about bias because they think if they see it in black and white or on Instagram, it must be gospel. Its like its etched in stone. The first time Waco High School economics teacher Nora Burnham voted, she was a freshman in college and facing the controversial election of 1992 with Ross Perot coming out as an independent. Our teacher would sit with us, and he would look at the positions with us and would ask us based on where you are in your life right now and your belief system, where do you fall with the candidates? We never knew where he stood with the candidates. He never took a position, Burnham said. Objectivity, you have to keep that, especially with the social media and the crazy things they see online. You cant let them know what you think because your job as the teacher is to prepare them to think for themselves. About 30 to 40 percent of Burnhams students have already turned 18. Each teacher holds daily discussions about current events, and those conversations often turn into discussions about separating fact from fiction and figuring out which candidate these voters connect with most outside of family influence, Moulds said. Ive told my kids, You need to pick out some non-negotiables, because no one candidate is going to match you up 100 percent, Moulds said. Their big deal has been minimum wage being raised, so weve talked about the consequences of that on both sides. And weve also discussed college being free. When this year started with Bernie Sanders, and a lot of last year, that was huge. A lot of kids were going with the Bern, but now they see that might not be definitive, I tell them, Is it really going to be free, or are you going to be paying for someone elses school once your schooling is done? Different methods In McGregor and Lorena ISD, two smaller school districts, teachers are taking polar opposite approaches to combat the social media onslaught of political headlines, they said. Government and economics teacher Brett Percefull just started at Lorena High School this year after coming from Austin. His class has 30 registered voters this semester, and his students havent reached the executive branch yet in his lesson plans. They will start that before Nov. 8, he said. My philosophy is Im going to give them all the information available to me to tell them how the process works the electoral college, where their vote counts and how their vote counts, Percefull said. From then on, especially during an election year, you have all these things going on outside of that. You have debates that go on, which I show in class, and information that comes out daily from news sources. My philosophy is to show them everything thats available, but dont guide them in any way. I want to know what their opinion is. Once the students know where they stand, he allows them to lead class discussion to make sure he is not swaying their opinions in any way, he said. McGregor High School government teacher Gene Griffin actually joins in with the discussion, though, with the understanding that everyones opinions are valid in his classroom, he said. Day one, Im an open book. You want to know? Im going to tell you what I think, and Ive done it for this reason, Griffin said. I think by knowing exactly where I stand on an issue, the kids can then figure out where they stand on an issue. You can only do that if you have a firm understanding that your opinion is just as valid as mine. My opinion doesnt mean Im right, but this is what I think and this is how I believe. Griffin then pushes his students toward print journalism instead of broadcast or social media, starting every day with a daily event. He thinks you can only learn the truth behind an issue by listening to and reading the work of unbiased journalists, he said. But like Moulds and Burnham, getting into the core of the platforms in daily discussions is easier when students understand and can voice their own values and connections to each candidate. At Waco High, Moulds and Burnham often use political cartoons or the more popular social media-friendly memes for writing prompts to understand why candidates want certain policies, what policies were implemented in the past or could be in the future, they said. Burnham later puts the essays under political platforms to identify what they value, she said. But the teachers said students essays often show the complexities of trying to set aside social media and the issues that directly influence them at home. More than 80 percent of Waco ISD students are economically disadvantaged, and often students open up about relatives or parents who live across the border or are in the United States illegally, they said. Poverty, immigration Discussions on poverty and immigration are the most difficult conversations they have had when it comes to the candidates, one of whom wants to build a wall along the Mexican border, they said. When you read the students responses to it, you start seeing whats going on in their home lives that affects their decisions, like, I see my parent work two jobs, and we still get our electricity turned off. Or, I have a child at home and I cant pay for diapers and pay for formula and do everything I need to do when Im only getting paid $7.75 an hour. Its hard on me, and I dont want that to continue, Burnham said. Theyll give you some very intelligent responses based on whats going on in their lives. At Midway High School, the district switched its class schedule for the semester, putting government classes in the fall instead of the usual economics course. The purpose was to give first-time voters as much of a chance at understanding the election process as possible, district spokeswoman Traci Marlin said. Beth Williams, one of Midway Highs government and economics teachers, said students have been eager to share their opinions. A third of her students are eligible to vote, and she tries to take a more neutral approach. She even tries to keep them guessing which way she leans by playing devils advocate, she said. Ive asked them to not pick one news outlet. We actually did an exercise where I emailed the parents and asked them to please sit down with your kids and watch election coverage, Williams said. Look at several different types of delivery TV, radio, internet. Look at something you would never look at. Try to look across the spectrum to see how they reported the same story. Unlike Waco students, most of her students have been curious more about election procedures than the issues, she said. Students eligible to vote seemed to already have their minds made up because of family influence, she said. The kids are real uncomfortable with the sexual assault discussion, Williams said. So, we kind of cover it sort of in generalizations. That may be what has been the most difficult about this cycle is that some of the topics are just not always classroom-appropriate. I dont have a problem with it, and most of the kids dont, but there are a few who are just really embarrassed to talk about some of that. Theyre adult, PG-13 topics, and some of our kids are not exposed to that. We tread very lightly, but we have to bring it up because theres allegations on both sides and theyre serious. Williams and other Midway teachers also focus on reminding students that the presidential race isnt the only race going on. Although this national election is the one that gets the attention, the most important thing they can do is pay attention to whats going on right outside their door, Williams said. Thats the vote that has the most impact. Its the people that pick up your trash, that are your police, fire, teachers, your school board elections. The county commissioner is huge. Thats where they need the most information. They dont even know what some of these people do, but they affect their quality of life. Midway and Waco ISDs dont have school board elections Nov. 8, but four other local school districts do. There are also nine city and state elections that directly impact McLennan County. No matter how their lesson plans or teaching styles vary, the educators agree theyre focused on accomplishing one thing: teaching students not to vote because of Trumps hair or Clintons gender but to vote because they have an educated understanding, they said. You have got to think big picture. Youre not always going to be where you are right now, Burnham said. If you have dreams and you have goals, this is not where youre always going to be. Try to think ahead, get educated on your vote because who you put in office is going to impact your job, your education and your childrens future. We have Supreme Court decisions that are probably going to have to be made because the justices are getting older, and this president were going to put in office can affect policy 30 or 40 years into the future. Now youre talking past my age. Beijing: Former trade minister Andrew Robb has defended his appointment as a senior economic adviser to Landbridge Group two months after leaving parliament as a "commercial arrangement", despite the contentious company's acknowledged role in advancing Chinese President Xi Jinping's strategic imperatives in the region. Landbridge, the Chinese operator of the Port of Darwin, has trumpeted its 99-year lease and the subsequent acquisition of Margarita Island, located by the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal, as key to the Chinese government's ambitions to build a "maritime economic corridor" as part of its multibillion-dollar "One Belt One Road" infrastructure roadmap. Mr Robb's appointment comes despite strategic and security analysts having warned Australian parliamentarians that the free-spending global infrastructure push has a political as well as an economic dimension, as part of an attempt by Beijing to create a strategic bloc to counter the United States' ascendancy in the region. The appointment was announced on Landbridge's website on September 2, exactly two months after Mr Robb retired as the MP for Goldstein in the July 2 election. In the announcement, Mr Robb said the "globalisation" process of Landbridge had left a "profound impression" and that he looked forward to "composing beautiful chapters" together with the company. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks at New Mount Olive Baptist Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Sunday. Credit:AP Using strident language, Reid wrote: "Your actions in recent months have demonstrated a disturbing double standard for the treatment of sensitive information, with what appears to be a clear intent to aid one political party over another." Reid accused Comey of withholding information on an FBI investigation into hacks on Democratic organisations, allegedly by Russian security services or hackers working at their direction, and possible links between various advisers to Trump. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Credit:AP "There is no danger to American interests from releasing it," he writes. "And yet, you continue to resist calls to inform the public of this critical information. By contrast, as soon as you came into possession of the slightest innuendo related to Secretary Clinton, you rushed to publicise it in the most negative light possible. "The clear double standard established by your actions strongly suggests that your highly selective approach to publicising information, along with your timing, was intended for the success or failure of a partisan candidate or political group". James Comey: 'team has been working around the clock to process and review a large volume of emails'. Credit:AP Former Obama attorney-general, Eric Holder, also joined the charge, co-signing a letter by dozens of former federal prosecutors accusing Comey of breaching Justice Department policy by informing congress of the newly uncovered Clinton emails, which, the letter argues, "invited considerable, uninformed public speculation" on the significance of the emails. As it emerged on Sunday that FBI investigators had been sitting silently, for the best part of a month, on the latest explosive trove of Clinton emails, the Democratic candidate and Donald Trump took markedly different approaches to the elephant in the room she stepped around it; he lassoed it and hauled it to centre stage. Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway. Despite strident demands for more information from Democrats and the GOP, beleaguered FBI director James Comey remained silent through the weekend letting his 166-word letter to Congress on Friday stand as the only justification for a rare FBI political intervention that has most analysts qualifying what had been their near-certain predictions that Clinton had the election in the bag. But information is dribbling from the FBI and other sources the warrant by which the computer containing the emails was seized reportedly was executed on October 3 and, according to The Washington Post, investigators realised within days the significance of its contents but inexplicably, it was not until Sunday that they received the necessary court authority to examine them. Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail at the weekend: even a 1 per cent swing against her could tip the race for the US Senate. Credit:AP Seemingly acknowledging the potential damage inflicted on the Clinton campaign, Senior Justice Department officials told media outlets that all resources would be made available to examine the thousands of emails a scramble had begun, but there were no public undertakings that the task would be completed by Election Day November 8. But the Post reported that there are almost 700 000 emails on the laptop, many of which were irrelevant to the Clinton investigation though it seemed that a "significant amount" of them were associated with Clinton and Abedin. Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday. Credit:Bloomberg In his letter to congress, Comey says the emails were brought to his attention as late as Thursday. The computer was taken as part of an investigation of the into the Internet sexual exploits of disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner, which creates a loop-back to the criminal investigation of Clinton's emails while serving as secretary of state because Weiner's estranged wife Huma Abedin is a Clinton aide and confidante.. Polls taken in the days before the Comey bombshell revealed a tightening race. In the Real Clear Politics average of national polls, Clinton's support is falling off a peak as Trump emerges from a trough two weeks ago she had a 7-point cushion; by Sunday it had shrunk to 4.3 points. At a Sunday rally in Las Vegas, a re-energised Trump ignored the fact that in July the FBI had cleared Clinton of criminal misconduct, telling supporters: "As you've heard it was just announced on Friday that the FBI is reopening their investigation into the criminal and illegal conduct of Hillary Clinton [she] has nobody but herself to blame for her mounting legal problems. Her criminal action was willful, deliberate, intentional and purposeful." Meanwhile, at a church service in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Clinton made no explicit mention of the FBI investigation. But in an oblique acknowledgement, she pleaded that the congregation not be "distracted by all the noise in the political environment". Stressing the value of perseverance, she told about 300 predominantly African American worshippers at the Mount Olive Baptist Church: "Everyone everyone is knocked down in life. And as my mother showed me and taught me, what matters is whether you get back up. And those of us who are people of faith know that getting back up is what we are called to do." As Clinton and Trump ricocheted between campaign stops in swing states, their surrogates traipsed from one Sunday morning TV talk show to the next, spinning the FBI controversy as best they could. Many resorted to what appeared to be pre-massaged code words the Clinton gang was "puzzled", the Trump mob was "troubled". Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta and manager Rob Mook each sought to isolate director Comey by quoting news reports that Attorney-General Loretta Lynch and her deputy Sally Yates had warned Comey not to make the new findings public. "We're calling on Mr Comey to come forward and explain what's at issue here," Podesta said. "It may not even be about her server. It may not be about her at all. [Comey] said himself, in his letter to the hill, that these emails may not be significant." Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway used the unprecedented nature of Comey's letter to congress as proof that there was something questionable in the new batch of emails which Comey did not say. Conway also turned the Democrat's argument that Comey had unreasonably interfered in the election back on them, claiming: "Had [Comey] sat on the information, one could argue that he also would have been interfering with the election, by not disclosing to the public that yet again, for the second time this year, Hillary Clinton is under FBI investigation for something of her own doing." In a bizarre twist, after weeks of abusing the FBI as a party to what he claims is a grand conspiracy to rig the election to prevent him winning, Trump spent much of the weekend singing hymns of praise to the agency. It was the same with the polls after weeks of condemning the pollsters as part of that conspiracy [because they showed he was losing], suddenly was invoking them as proof he was winning [because they are tightening]. Despite signs among Democratic operatives of them being rattled by Comey's intervention, they attempted to put a brave, steady-as- she-goes face on what effectively is the last week of the campaign talking up their poll numbers in the vital swing states and arguing that Clinton tended to perform at her best in adverse circumstances. She reportedly has polled strongly in the estimated 20-plus million votes already cast in 38 states that allow early voting but she might take a hit in marginal Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, in both of which votes are case only on Election Day. Loading Principal Financial Group, Inc. provides retirement, asset management, and insurance products and services to businesses, individuals, and institutional clients worldwide. The company operates through Retirement and Income Solutions, Principal Global Investors, Principal International, and U.S. Insurance Solutions segments. The Retirement and Income Solutions segment provides a portfolio of asset accumulation products and services for retirement savings and income. 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Back in 2001 The Nassau Institutes brief analysis of the 2001/2002 budget pointing out the hidden subsidies to government corporations like BahamasAir, should have set warning bells off. But they were dismissed as sour grapes. Since then these subsidies have grown exponentially. As Richard Coulson pointed out in a recent article (BPL and BEC: Siamese Twins of Electric Power) Early this year Government authorized a BEC $600 million Rate Reduction Bond, but current reports show little success to date in placing these securities, and the technical default of an outstanding $100 million BEC bond was recently announced. And what do we get from the governing partys mouth piece when ill advised policies are implemented or having a negative impact? Nothing more than anyone in opposition to these reckless policies are stupid, or dumb etc. Base ad hominem attacks. Restraint with public spending and freeing the private sector from the yoke of high taxes and the regulatory burden are crucial steps at this juncture to help turn the dismal economic indicators around. Will this government be honest enough to admit the country is headed in the wrong direction under their watch? They can continue to blame the previous government for setting the country on this negative path and use that as evidence they need to reform themselves so they don't lose face and are seen as courageous. Its doubtful this will happen, but would be a good first step in rebuilding trust in government and business/investor confidence. New Zealands efforts to reverse its path to bankruptcy continues to serve as a worthwhile example. See here here here (pdf) here and here Many politicians miss the fact that they do not create economic growth - but their policies can stymie it, as in evidence today. In other words, government should be kept within defined limits. Added to these truisms are the problems created with narrow political and economic perspectives and ideological differences. Yet in spite of these, common sense has allegedly prevailed in New Zealand and most of the reforms have remained in place. Bad public policies have finally caught up with The Bahamas. What was once the rose of the region is in serious economic decline. Maybe a few upcoming Bahamian politicians understand whats necessary and will challenge the prevailing trends within political discourse and the bad policies of their parties? If not, The Bahamas will become the regions poster child for how to destroy an economy instead of the first small, developed, sovereign country in the region, recognized as a model for the world. Fort Polk, LA (71446) Today Cloudy this morning with showers during the afternoon. High near 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.. Tonight Mostly cloudy early, then clearing overnight. Low 54F. Winds light and variable. The state-mandated initiative to grow marijuana and process it for medical purposes will need at least $11 million in private funding to get off the ground, and it will be at least 18 months before any product sales are made, according to a project concept recently released by the LSU AgCenter. Details of the project were unveiled Friday (Oct. 28) at a public forum on the LSU campus. The LSU AgCenter recently opted in to be licensed by the state as the official production facility for medical marijuana, per a law the Louisiana Legislature passed in 2015. The law, known as the Alison Neustrom Act, allows people with qualifying illnesses to obtain a doctors recommendation for medical marijuana. Louisiana is one of 25 states, plus the District of Columbia, with laws that provide protocols for medical marijuana production and use. The LSU AgCenter is excited about developing a medical grade product that will help people manage their medical issues, said LSU Vice President for Agriculture Bill Richardson. No state funds will be used in the program. A private entity which has not yet been selected will finance and carry out the operation through an agreement with the AgCenter. The operation will eventually have several employees, including horticulturalists, chemists and lab technicians, according to the project concept document. The operation will require a budget of about $1.3 million for its first year. Projections in the plan show that expenses are expected to exceed revenues until at least 2020. Sales of a medical marijuana product in 2018 could be as low as $727,000 and as high as $2.4 million. By 2024, sales could reach anywhere between $13.1 million and $20.1 million. A 10-milligram dose of medical marijuana will cost about $2.95, according to the document. But sales of a final product are unlikely before 2018. According to the document, an estimated 1,441, or .25 percent, of the 576,520 Louisiana residents living with certain conditions HIV, cancer, wasting syndrome, spasticity, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, Crohns disease and epilepsy could use medical marijuana with a doctors recommendation. The process will take a raw plant and extract oils to create a final, medical-grade product, Richardson said. AgCenter officials believe the most cost-effective approach would be to renovate an existing off-campus warehouse to be used as an indoor growing and laboratory facility outfitted with lights, irrigation equipment and a security system. A space of 15,000 square feet will be needed to meet Louisianas demands. Renovation is estimated to cost about $6 million, the document says. There will be tight security at the facility, and production and formulation will adhere to strict guidelines set by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry and Louisiana Board of Pharmacy. Off-duty law enforcement officers will secure the facility, which will also be under video surveillance, at all times. More information on the medical marijuana initiative, including the project concept, is posted online at www.lsuagcenter.com/agmedical. By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 31, 2016 | 05:31 AM | MCCRACKEN COUNTY, KY A disturbance call Sunday night ended with a Carlisle County man's arrest on drug charges. According to the McCracken County Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to a local business on John Puryear Drive in reference to a disturbance. Deputies said 46-year-old James Figley of Cunningham was involved in an argument with a woman. According to police, a search of Figley revealed a methamphetamine smoking pipe, a small quantity of meth and some marijuana. Figley was also reportedly under the influence of meth at the time of his arrest. Figley was arrested and lodged in the McCracken County Regional Jail. He's charged with possession of meth, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana and public intoxication. Man in Halloween mask captured on video stealing car in Trigg County Email To : Multiple e-mail addresses must be separated with a comma character(maximum 200 characters) Email To is required. Your Full Name: (optional) Your Email Address: Your Email Address is required. By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 31, 2016 | 07:58 AM | CALLOWAY COUNTY, KY A single-vehicle crash over the weekend in Calloway County claimed one man's life. According to the Calloway County Sheriff's Office, the wreck happened at around 10:45 am near the 1600 block of the Highway 121 North Bypass, just north of Murray. Deputies said 23-year-old Anthony Allen of Herndon, KY, was traveling south when his vehicle left the road, crossed through a business parking lot, struck a gas main and then a tree head on. Allen was taken to Murray-Calloway County Hospital, and later airlifted to a Tennessee hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Deputies said there was a large gas leak due to the crash, and Murray City Public Works responded to shut off the gas main. Surrounding businesses and homes located near the gas leak were evacuated for a short time until the leak was repaired. Advertisement By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 29, 2016 | MURRAY, KY By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 29, 2016 | 08:56 PM | MURRAY, KY Police in Murray say a Tennessee man involved in a weekend shooting is now behind bars. According to the Murray Police Department, Rashaad Warr of Memphis, TN, has been located and is lodged in the Calloway County Jail on charges of 2nd degree burglary and attempted murder. Police said the incident began just after 5 pm on Friday when an apparent fight broke out at an apartment complex on Diuguid Drive in Murray. Police say while they were on their way to the fight, dispatchers alerted them that shots had been fired. Officers say when they got there, they learned that two suspects had ran away on foot, and at least one had apparently fired several shots at three people in a vehicle in the complex parking lot. No one in the vehicle was injured. Police tried to find the suspects in a nearby wooded area with a K-9 with no luck. Police identified the two suspects as being 18-year-old Jareth Austin and 21-year-old Rashaad Warr, both of Memphis, Tennessee. Austin was found on the Murray State University Campus and placed under arrest. He was charged with three counts of attempted murder and is in the Calloway County Jail. Police say Warr remained on the loose until Monday. By Paul Schaumburg, Graves County Schools Oct. 30, 2016 | 09:06 PM | MAYFIELD, KY In pursuing her college degree in education and now as a teacher early in her career at Graves County Middle School, Jessica Holder is familiar with the concept of "to give pause." The MacMillan Dictionary says, it means "to make someone think carefully about something." Holder realizes grammar, syntax, and similar rules of writing are important to communicate clearly. She also knows common ground is important in connecting with others in teaching, writing, and virtually every other pursuit in life. "I'm obsessed with animals and a lot of my kiddos are, too," she explained. "They like to tell me stories about their pets because I like to tell them stories about mine." A quick poll of the class in front of her at the moment reveals the vast majority of those students also have pets. So, when Holder and her students decided to create a project together, it made sense to focus on their pets. "It is something we all have in common and we decided we wanted to do something that is bigger than just ourselves," the teacher said, noting that, again, their interaction "gave them pause. " "We wondered what we could do to help more than just us," Holder continued. "So, we thought this is a good way to get the kids excited and engaged. It's a chance for them to see that they can do something a lot bigger than just themselves. So, we call this project 'Paws for a Cause.'" "We're raising money so the dogs and cats at the Mayfield-Graves County Animal Shelter can stay there until they can find their forever homes," said seventh grader Kristen Brinkley. In fact, the entire seventh grade Blue Team, of approximately 150 students, is partnering to publicize and support the pets. Since Holder teaches writing, "We made brochures to put out in the community to tell others about the animal shelter and what we're doing," said seventh grader, Emma Swift. "We also have made donation boxes, flyers, and posters to help spread the word." "I went to the shelter and made a video to show the students what it is like there," Holder noted. "We made a little recording of what the shelter needs from us to help them. From that, the students got a glimpse of it what it looks like, the kind of animals they have there and so forth." Holder said they'll continue to accept contributions until Nov. 3rd. The Mayfield-Graves County Animal Shelter, 500 No. 12th St., Mayfield, also is a good place to make a donation in care of the "Paws for a Cause" project. It's open between noon and 5 pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday as well as from noon to 4 pm Saturday. Its telephone number is 270-251-0130. The Graves County Middle School teacher and her students say the project has made them think beyond themselves and they hope it inspires others in the community to do the same. After all, in this case, to give pause is to give not only thought, but action to help to innocent animals who just want a home... In other words, "Paws for a Cause." An exhausted services Airman takes a break in a library after a long night of work in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. On the upper floor of a different building in the Khobar Towers military dormitory, a junior officer is preparing for bed and an early day. More than 7,000 miles away, a services Airman in the Air Force Reserves is preparing to report to active duty the next day, on June 26, 1996, at the Port Mortuary on Dover Air Force Base. All three Airmens lives, and many others, would forever change that night. Around 10 p.m., on June 25, 1996, the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia were rocked by a massive explosion, and the ripple effect of the blast would be felt for decades. Twenty years after the attack on the Khobar Towers, three survivors of the bombing and its aftermath work side by side at the Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations (AFMAO) on Dover. With the night of the attack and the days immediately after seared into their memories, they reflected on their similar journeys. Far removed from that summer night in 1996, an uncanny coincidence has brought them together surrounding the month and 20th anniversary of the attack. They are Air Force leaders and experts now in the esoteric field of military mortuary affairs, honoring all fallen members of the Armed Forces. Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations, which was called Port Mortuary back when the Khobar Towers were attacked, is often described as the best-worst place to work. It is the most exclusive assignment for services Airmen. AFMAO Commander Col. Dawn Lancaster was a first lieutenant and assigned as a protocol officer when the attack happened. She said before her room was rocked by the explosion and she was jostled violently on her bed a couple buildings away from the structure that was directly impacted her biggest concern was waking up early enough to set up for a change of command the next morning. I was lying in bed, half asleep, half awake, she recalled while fingering the pages of a photo album shes kept of her time living at the Khobar Towers and working at the 4404th Air Expeditionary Wing. I remember trying to scream and nothing came out. Darkness. Smoke. A surreal serenity permeated the immediate seconds following the blast and its aftershock. Downstairs, outside, she said she found more darkness, more smoke. In the basement recreation, library and eating area of another building, then-Senior Airman Meshelle Lemon had just worked a full shift as a recreation specialist. The now-AFMAO chief enlisted advisor, Chief Master Sgt. Meshelle Dyer, said she would have been in her room had she not been invited to midnight meal by a co-worker. She might have saved my life or at the very least saved me from getting injured by flying glass, Dyer said. With her photographs from that earlier time spread out on a table in her office, she examined the wreckage of that time from her past. I had just gotten off shift and was exhausted, but I was more hungry than tired so I waited for her, thankfully. Dyers basement work area was like a bunker; she was shielded by the high, small windows, and by a couch and a stranger. There was a guy reading a book at a table behind the couch, and he jumped over the couch and shielded me from flying debris. The instinct to help, to protect, to secure, all came as second nature to so many, Lancaster recalled. When I got outside, there was so much dust, smoke, people walking around confused, dazed, bloodied. But something caught her eye in the distance and it stayed with her for more than twenty yearspartially attributed as the reason shes still in uniform today. I saw two guys carrying another guy on their shoulders; his legs were bloodied. I saw so many strangers helping each other. Everyone just helped. Lancaster assumed command of AFMAO a few days after the June anniversary of the attack, and she hired Dyer during that anniversary month. Neither woman knew that the other was a fellow survivor. We didnt even know each other when we were stationed there, Lancaster said, recalling that her deployment was nearly over when the attack happened. Dyer said she was beyond green back then. It was my fifth day there. We were locked down. Through the softened lens of years, for two survivors of the Khobar Towers attack the tragedy became the very reason they found themselves working together, both in leadership roles at the sole state-side military mortuary serving the fallen. When asked if the attack galvanized their sense of belonging in the Air Force: Definitely, its the reason I still serve, said Lancaster. Its a big reason Im still here, echoed Dyer. They both said it was the rallying together and the will to fight that defined them, not the bombs blast. Electa Wright, who was a one-striper Airman when the Khobar Towers attack happened, is now a retired senior master sergeant continuing to serve at AFMAO as a licensed mortuary technician. In 1996, her knowledge of the Khobar Towers was nil. I didnt even know where it was, she confessed, quickly acknowledging how intimate her understanding of the place soon became. In response to the attack, she served 14-hour days on orders as a much-needed Reservist at the old Port Mortuary. It was my job to take the fallen members from station to station; to stay with them throughout the process. Wright said somewhere in the long and daunting days following the attack, when 19 fallen Servicemembers passed through the care of the old Port Mort, she found a purpose in providing that final care to fellow service members. Opening the pouch containing human remains days after and thousands of miles away from the attack, Wright recalled 20 years later how she was forever changed. A service member killed by the blast while sleeping in his bed; another so burned by the intense heat that he appeared frozen in a position of running for his life. Wright said she could still recall the colors of their shirts, and she could tell the one member was sleeping because, He was curled up in the fetal position and his eyes were closed. On the night of the attack, Security Forces Airmen spotted a suspicious truck from a rooftop. After witnessing the driver running away, they began alerting residents. Moments later the explosion. The carnage. The acts of heroism. The selflessness in the face of tragedy. The rallying of spirits. All permeated the base like the dust and debris. Lancaster said everything, including the change of command, stopped because normalcy was needed most. Everyone focused on taking care of the wounded and the fallen in getting them home and nothing else mattered. The remains were transported from Dhahran to Dovers Port Mortuary. Airmen like Wright, the former one-striper, cleaned and dressed the remains, all to preserve their dignity and honor. Back across thousands of miles of land and sea, it would be up to others to sift through debris, to ask questions like Who? and Why? Questions aimed at exposing all those responsible for the attack. The first soluble steps at answering those questions would take 19 years. In August 2015, a man suspected in the bombing was captured and identified as Ahmed al-Mughassil, the head of the military wing of Saudi Hezbollah, according to the U.S. State Department and the FBI. He is suspected of orchestrating the attack, which was the deadliest targeting of U.S. forces since the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marines barracks in Beirut, when 241 American servicemen were killed. He has yet to face trial. To survivors, the lingering question of whether justice will ever be served for the 19 killed and the nearly 500 others injured was answered on the day of the attack. No. Not ever. There can never be justice for that, said Lancaster, who received a Purple Heart for wounds inflicted that day by shards of imploding glass. It was a defining time for me. Ive never forgotten it. With his side somewhat lacking in attacking flair, one of the many questions hanging over Jose Mourinho at the moment is his staunch refusal to let Henrikh Mkhitaryan anywhere near his team. Despite United spluffing around 26million on him just a few short months ago, Mkhitaryan hasnt been included in a matchday squad since mid-September specifically the day he was subbed off at half-time on his full debut against Man City. In recent weeks it would appear that the Armenian forward has been sidelined in the same vein as Bastian Schweinsteiger, who has effectively attained persona non grata status at United under Mourinho. Indeed, much like Schweinsteiger, Mkhitaryan has been forced to watch on from the margins, emitting vaguely optimistic Tweets from afar Better days will come for us! We march on. One for all and all for one! #mufc pic.twitter.com/Cjur2E3kYv Henrikh Mkhitaryan (@HenrikhMkh) October 30, 2016 The Sunday after missing out on Uniteds toothless 0-0 draw against Burnley, Mkhitaryan was spotted leaving Carrington on his lonesome though it later emerged that hed been told to train alone were seemingly wide of the mark. Instead, the Manchester Evening News have it that the 27-year-old is actually putting in extra shifts in a bid to impress his manager. United players were given Sunday off by Jose Mourinho but Mkhitaryan chose to enhance his fitness at the clubs training complex, contrary to reports claiming he was made to train alone. M.E.N. Sport understands Mkhitaryan has always done additional training sessions dating back to his stint at Shakhtar Donetsk and a source described him as a perfectionist and a hard worker. Fingers crossed the charm offensive works for the poor bugger. He only wants to help. Sadly, you fear hes just a bit of roll-neck knitwear away from this Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 30/10/2016 (2193 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A Winnipeg woman killed in a head-on collision south of the city on Sunday had started a new career just days before her death. Marlene Komus, 26, was driving southbound on Highway 75 when she collided head-on with a car heading in the wrong direction on the divided highway. Komus was pronounced dead at the scene while the driver of the other car, a 21-year-old woman also from Winnipeg, was rushed to hospital by ambulance where she was pronounced dead. LINKEDIN PHOTO Marlene Komus Its a shock, Barb Borden, a manager at Canstar Community Newspapers, said on Sunday. She was a nice person. She just fit in here so great. She was starting her new career after working in an art gallery. St. Pierre-Jolys RCMP said on Sunday that the collision occurred about 6 a.m., on Highway 75, south of St. Norbert and just north of Provincial Road 247. RCMP said they are still investigating the cause of the crash with the help of a forensic collision reconstructionist, but they believe speed, alcohol and distracted driving played a role. Borden said she just hired Komus and she would have been starting her third week of work on Monday. Canstar, owned by FP Canadian Newspapers, which also owns the Winnipeg Free Press, publishes six community newspapers including the Lance, Herald and Headliner. She was going to be an outside salesperson, Borden said. A person was leaving and we were training her to take over his accounts. She also told me she had just bought a house with her sister. Its just so sad. Komus, a graduate of the Academy of Broadcasting in Winnipeg, worked a year as news director at 610 CHTM radio in Thompson in 2010. According to Komus LinkedIn account, she had been working as sales and marketing manager at the Ymuno Art Gallery in Montreal for more than a year before returning to Winnipeg. Madeline Richards, of Ymuno, said she was shocked to hear of Komus death. She was amazing, Richards said from Montreal. She did a lot of work for us in our gallery getting it started. She was very adventurous. She travelled a lot. But she loved Winnipeg. It was her favourite place and she wanted to move back to be closer to family and friends. Richards said she talked to Komus just a few days ago about her new job. She was really excited and nervous, too, she said. She was sure she was good at sales. She was really happy about getting the job and proud she was able to get it. I cant even believe shes gone. Relatives could not be reached for comment. The death of the two women werent the only traffic fatalities this weekend in Manitoba caused by a motorist in the wrong lane on a divided highway. Portage la Prairie RCMP are continuing to investigate after the drivers of a pickup truck and a minivan died on Friday night near MacGregor. RCMP said an eastbound pickup truck was reported to be driving the wrong way on the Trans-Canada Highway, but before RCMP could get there the vehicle slammed into a westbound van. Both the 63-year-old truck driver and 29-year-old van driver died in the collision. kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 30/10/2016 (2193 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The Winnipeg Police Services clandestine lab unit is investigating after finding a white powdery substance in a West End apartment. Police were called to the 400 block of Maryland Street around 4:30 p.m. Saturday to investigate an assault after a man in his 20s was taken to hospital with several injuries. While in the apartment, police discovered an unknown white powder and are still investigating. Police dont believe there was a drug lab inside the apartment. Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Rob Carver said officers observed white powder and immediately called for the forces clandestine lab team who are trained to deal with potential hazards and wear hazmat suits to protect themselves to investigate. JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Police were investigating Sunday after a white powdery substance was found at 426 Maryland St. during an assault investigation. Whenever we see a scene that has white powder, there could be potential for fentanyl, said Carver Sunday afternoon. If it is fentanyl, there are hazards; it is potentially lethal. Police and health officials have repeatedly warned the public of the serious threat to public safety fentanyl poses across North America. The opioid is used as a painkiller for terminally ill cancer patients and is 100 times more powerful than morphine. Last week, police arrested two adults after a critically ill infant was rushed to hospital Oct. 18, possibly suffering from exposure to the powerful opiate fentanyl. The assault victim is now in stable condition and the investigation is ongoing. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 31/10/2016 (2192 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. BOARDS The womens committee of the RWB executive has announced its slate of officers: past-president, Jane Fudge; president, Linda Chernenkoff; vice-presidents, Ruth Gregory and Ilana Warner; treasurer, Laura Stott and Lon Brandon; publicity chairwoman, Joan Erichsen. Manitoba Aerospace is pleased to announce the 2016 All-Stars Award recipients, to be presented at its annual dinner Nov. 17. Proceeds are in support of the aerospace student endowment fund. Don Boitson, Magellan Aerospace, for leadership; Terry Trupp, Boeing Winnipeg, for builder; Winnipeg Maintenance Management Team, Keewatin Air, for process improvements & business growth; 737 MAX Acoustic Inner Barrel Product Development Team, Boeing Winnipeg, for innovation & leadership. SSCOPE Inc. has announced its board of directors: past-chairwoman Angela McCaughan; co-chairwomen Monica Schroeder and Llana Henderson; treasurer Will Darracott; secretary Maribel Abrenica; directors Ray Townsend, Heidi Werschler, and Gloria Benham. SSCOPE Inc. provides employment for people living with mental-health issues. COMPANIES Lisa Reid Audiology is proud to announce the appointment of Kelly Render Lazarenko as practice manager. Kelly will oversee the groups operations as well as business development activities. Kelly brings a business perspective to the group with more than 20 years experience in the financial industry. Kelly also spent four years in a volunteer capacity as president of the Canadian Deaf-blind and Rubella Association board. Quadrant Asset Management managing directors Murray Palay and Michael Susser are pleased to welcome Vern Doerksen, private wealth manager, to the Quadrant Asset Management team. Vern brings more than 12 years of professional experience and a passion for helping clients and their families achieve their financial goals. Established in 2005, Quadrant Asset Management is based in Winnipeg and serves individuals, families, and institutions throughout Western Canada and Ontario. Got a promotion or a new contract? Email your submissions to: bizlistings@freepress.mb.ca. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 31/10/2016 (2192 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA A Manitoba company was showcased by International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland Monday as a prime example of how Canadians will benefit from the new trade agreement between Canada and Europe. Sunday night, Freeland tweeted a photo of herself giving European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom a pair of Kanada moccasins made by Manitobah Mukluks. During a news conference about signing the deal Monday she noted the Winnipeg-based company will benefit once the deal is ratified. I thought it was a gift Cecelia would like, Freeland said of the mukluks. She is from Sweden so she is used to the cold. But I also chose that gift to remind Canadians that opening up markets, and the EU is a market of half a billion people, creates tremendous opportunities for small- and medium-sized businesses across the country. In this case, those Mukluks are currently subject to a 17 per cent tariff in Europe. That tariff will go down to zero after CETA is ratified. CHRYSTIA FREELAND / TWITTER International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland gifts a pair of moccasins from Manitobah Mukluk to European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom in Brussels. CETA eliminates most tariffs applied to Canadian exports destined for Europe (and European exports destined for Canada). For the Winnipeg company, the tariff on the 20 per cent of its products that are made in Canada will be eliminated under CETA. Its not entirely clear whether the moccasins and Mukluks made overseas will meet the country-of-origin requirements for no tariff although it is likely they will. The change should make the mukluks and moccasins an easier sell in Europe. The companys website indicates it already has a global presence with sales in Germany, France, the Netherlands and Sweden which are all part of the EU. Manitobah Mukluks was founded by Sean McCormick in 1990. In a statement emailed to the Free Press Monday, McCormick said it was an honour to have the product chosen as a gift for the CETA signing. That gift is symbolic of a tradition that has existed in indigenous communities for generations, said McCormick. We often bestow new moccasins upon those who are about to start a new journey or enter a new relationship together. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau flew to Brussels to sign the completed deal on Sunday, although it must still be ratified in both Canada and across the EU. Freeland said Canada has been told the European Parliament should hold a ratification vote in December. Canada tabled the agreement and introduced enabling legislation Monday afternoon. Provinces could also have to introduce legislation to address CETA changes although Manitoba Trade Minister Cliff Cullen said Monday he didnt believe Manitoba needed to change any legislation in order to accommodate CETA. He said Manitoba will be a big beneficiary of the deal, with an estimated $200 million in additional exports, including agriculture, manufacturing and the service sector. Manitoba is a trading province, he said. Freeland said Monday Canada and Europe are signing this at a time when many around the world are talking about closing borders rather than opening them, is a big deal. CETA is a trade agreement but it is also a very important message from Europe, from Canada, to the world, that open, progressive globalization is possible, Freeland said. That even in 2016 it is possible to have policies that are about building bridges and not building walls. mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 30/10/2016 (2193 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Winnipeg police are searching for suspects after shots were fired inside a coffee shop at the citys largest hospital Sunday night. No one was hurt in the shooting, which happened around 10 p.m. at the Starbucks attached to the Health Sciences Centre in the 700 block of William Avenue. Two men, one of whom was carrying a small-calibre handgun, chased a third man into the coffee shop as he ran behind the counter. The man with the gun fired three shots that didnt hit anyone, Winnipeg Police Service Staff Sgt. Bob Chrismas said in a news release. He initially characterized the shooting as likely a failed robbery attempt, but said the investigation is still ongoing. All three men fled. Theyre described only as being around 19 years old. Jason Bell / Winnipeg Free Press A large police presence remained outside the Health Sciences Centre Sunday night as officers continue to investigate a shooting. Two shots were fired and two suspects are being sought. A large police presence, including the tactical unit, responded as the hospital went into lockdown mode. Officers were continuing to interview witnesses inside Starbucks Sunday night. Anyone with information can contact police at 204-986-6222. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 31/10/2016 (2192 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Today, in the House of Commons, Robert-Falcon Ouellette will introduce the Indian Residential School Genocide and Reconciliation Memorial Day Act, which was drafted by fellow Winnipegger Maeengan Linklater. This act is a significant opportunity for Canada to demonstrate its commitment to addressing the legacy of Indian residential schools and the 94 calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). The act calls for the creation of an Indian Residential School Memorial Day on June 2 of every year, when special attention will be given to understanding and reconciling the destructive history of settler colonialism in Canada. By creating an official day, the act responds to the TRCs call upon the federal government, in collaboration with aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a national day for truth and reconciliation to honour survivors, their families and communities and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process. The Indian residential school system operated between approximately 1870 and 1996. During this time, more than 150,000 indigenous children were removed from their families and communities and required to spend most of the year learning to despise their own peoples and cultures. The schools were initiated in an effort to address the Indian problem the notion that indigenous peoples represented an obstacle to Canadian territorial expansion, property ownership and nation-building. The solution to this supposed problem was thought to be assimilation destroying indigenous groups by forcibly transforming their children. Cruel discipline, religious training, humiliation, manual labour and strict rules were used to shape the children attending these schools. Physical and sexual violence, hunger and illness kept the children fearful and docile and resulted in long-lasting trauma and social problems for indigenous families and communities. It is true Canadians should seek to face this history and live in the spirit of the 94 recommendations every day, and that our historical memory and obligations should not be restricted to only a single day of the year. The purpose of a memorial day is not to let us off the hook for the other 364 days. A memorial day, rather, serves to invigorate participation in the ongoing process of reconciliation. It allows us to marshal resources, intensify education and create relationships through planned events and activities, which can then serve as a springboard for continuing efforts toward reconciliation. Memory and truth are crucial precedents to reconciliation. It is through remembering that we commit to behavioural and political change. A day of memory refuses the human tendency toward indifference and denial. It demands that we consider that we live in a world that made such suffering possible. It asks us to engage with the testimony of the survivors and to understand their personal suffering, as well as the system that caused this suffering. And through this understanding, we can take the first steps toward reconciliation. The act is also important because it challenges Canada to further acknowledge how the residential school system purposively sought to destroy indigenous nations. By referencing both the United Nations Genocide Convention and the TRCs charge of cultural genocide, the act is a way for Canada to recognize its efforts to ensure there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been absorbed into the body politic, as Duncan Campbell Scott put it in 1920. By passing this act, the Canadian government would take ownership of its deliberate decision to forcibly transfer children of the group to another group in a manner that was destructive to indigenous groups. This legal terminology of genocide only scratches the surface of what survivors experienced when they were wrenched from loving homes and families and placed in the cold and violent spaces of the schools. The loss of traditional names and language, the interruption of cultural teachings and knowledge transmission, the imposition of European spirituality and political models, among many other assaults on the continuity of indigenous groups, all conspired to make difficult the return of children to their home communities in the aftermath of their schooling. As well, they resulted in difficult healing journeys for the many children subjected to the residential schools. Many did not survive their journey, lost to suicides, accidents, violence, lifestyle or abandonment. It is the bare minimum we can do to take a day to remember not only what Canada did to its First Peoples, but what we each must do now to contribute to reconciliation as individuals, communities and Canadians. Andrew Woolford is president of the International Association of Genocide Scholars. Theodore Fontaine is the victor over his residential school experience and an author. In May, more than than 60 percent of St. Charles school district voters rejected a proposed referendum to fund a number of capital projects. The district and school board went back to the drawing board, and has put a revised proposal before voters Nov. 8 that would include about $12.4 million in projects, down from the original $18.2 million request. Part of the changes include the activity center having a two-station gymnasium, instead of the original three. Superintendent Mark Roubinek said after the first referendum, failed the school board sent out a survey and held public meetings to gauge the biggest concerns. They received feedback from about 500 people, with the top two issues being overall cost, and the scope of the activity center project. Among other projects dropped in the new referendum include the walking/running track, weight room, and the commons area/cafeteria expansion. The elementary school updates are still on the referendum having four kindergarten rooms, remodeling the pre-school space, and moving the school-aged child care center from the basement of the school. Upgrades to restrooms, classrooms, hallways and entryways are also still on the new list. Overall, it seems the new referendum has been positively received, Roubinek said. But we know its still a tough sell for some families because of their economic situation. Some farm families in particular are struggling, he said. Still, he hopes this referendum is more strongly tailored to public influence, and said it deserves a vote at the ballot box come Nov. 8. Overall, we wanted to hear the publics concerns and then make changes to the referendum based on the feedback we received. Overall, it seems the new referendum has been positively received, Roubinek said. But we know its still a tough sell for some families because of their economic situation. Mark Roubinek, St. Charles superintendent Throw the bums out is a popular argument every election year, and in particular this fall when it comes to the Minnesota Legislature, which has proved incredibly capable of doing very little. No tax bill. No transportation bill. No reforms, just the standard scene of late-night, last-minute chaos and breakdown. Not even a bonding bill, which funds infrastructure projects across the state. The bonding bill comes along every election year, and typically involves just a round of bipartisan high-fives as lawmakers head off to campaign and talk up the local money and jobs they brought back. And then the ongoing MNsure debacle, which we wont go into detail on here; the politics are murky and the big fixes are in Washington, not St. Paul. But that simplistic, anti-incumbent argument would ignore the evidence of getting things done, and cohesive, aggressive advocacy for southeast Minnesotas most pressing issues, that the representatives and senators in the Winona area have strongly demonstrated. Thats why were endorsing a slate of House and Senate incumbents: Sen. Jeremy Miller, R-Winona; Sen. Matt Schmit, DFL-Red Wing; Rep. Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona; Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston; and Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa. Thats not to say the alternatives dont deserve serious consideration. We were roundly impressed by the strength and poise of two challengers Jon Pieper, running against Miller, and Thomas Trehus, running against Davids as well as the potential of Mike Goggin, running against Schmit. HOUSE 28A: Gene Pelowski Pelowski may be running for his 16th term, but hes got the energy, drive and intensity of a first-time challenger. Hes been the architect of state-changing policies, ranging from a tuition freeze at public universities to legislation that streamlined the states ability to quickly provide money to aid natural disasters. Hes also leading the charge on a package of legislative reforms that would redefine the way the House does business, putting focus on quality over quantity and, most importantly, making sure the work gets done. Pelowski also volunteers his time running the Model Legislature, teaching a new generation to be public servants, which continues to be fitting we cant think of a stronger or more effective model legislator. SENATE 28: Jeremy Miller Miller continues to promote his work building the Purple Caucus, but not all of his have been quite as purple, or district-driven, in recent years. He hasnt been able to live down voting against a bonding bill this spring that included more than $25 million for WSUs Education Village, a crucial project not just for Winona but for the entire state. His argument that the vote was strategic may be sound, but its cold comfort to voters who want a champion for their interests. Still, Miller in his six years of service has a long list of concrete accomplishments that other state lawmakers would be proud to claim even half of: A program that cleared obstacles for students transferring credits at state universities; taking on synthetic drugs; the Super Gav act that expanded newborn screenings; advocating for big projects from the interstate bridge to the Fillmore County veterans cemetery; and more. He continues to be a strong and accessible advocate, particularly for Winona County. HOUSE 28B: Greg Davids Davids, the Houses tax chair, put partisan politics aside to craft a bipartisan tax bill that would have created substantial, positive and immediate changes for many Minnesotans. Unfortunately Gov. Mark Dayton vetoed the bill, and Davids deserves to be in the same chair responsible for putting the bill back on the table. Davids has too often enjoyed partisan flamethrowing over the years, but we believe that having a signature achievement within grasp will be more than enough motivation for him to return to the Capitol and cross the aisle to get his work done. SENATE 21: Matt Schmit Schmit has the energy of a 10-year-old boy and the brain of a tenured political-science professor, which makes him a force of nature when taking on everything from broadband development to strategic investments in K-12 education. He hasnt always had an easy run in a Republican-leaning district, especially his advocacy of broad spending on the issues mentioned above, but we continue to appreciate his work and believe his accomplishments have done more than enough to temper any of the criticism hes received since taking office in 2012. His opponent, Mike Goggin, has the potential to be the kind of no-nonsense, independent voice that has benefited the district so long, from Steve Murphy to John Howe. He has great business and personal accomplishments, but has yet to present strong command and understanding of the multiple complex issues facing the state. HOUSE 21B: Steve Drazkowski Drazkowski likely cringes whenever he finds his name on our editorial pages. Weve been highly critical of his partisan posturing, his embrace of ALEC-crafted legislation, and his hard-line stances on spending and taxes, among, well, more than a few other issues. We stand by all that. And we stand by this: Drazkowski deserves praise, because he came back to his district this year with his name attached to good work. When he was named the chair of the Houses Property Tax and Local Government Finance subcommittee, he was immediately pilloried. He responded by holding dozens of listening sessions and introducing legislation with important, positive changes for Minnesota taxpayers, including reforming the way farmers pay for school building referendums. His rhetoric has calmed, his focus has sharpened, and hes demonstrated a sincere desire to put his name to work that benefits Minnesotans. We hope to see that work continue. Elise Diesslin, a first-time candidate running against Drazkowski, appears to have the right spirit and intent but has come across as inexperienced and overmatched. SENATE 28: Jon Pieper In a time when fewer great minds and talents are choosing to run for public office, southeast Minnesota is blessed to have a bench of Democratic and Republican talent, particularly in Pieper and Trehus. Pieper is a grassroots candidate who commits to knocking on every door in the district he wants to represent. He did it in 2014 running against Davids, and did it again 20,000 doors, hes estimated against Miller. In two years hes moved from raw talent to a refined, grounded, purposeful candidate committed to revitalizing rural economies, one who deeply feels and understands the needs of the districts people and carries them within him. Pieper is a graduate of Camp Wellstone, the program that prepares progressive, compassionate candidates for public office in the image of the late U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone. So much of his language and spirit is grounded in Wellstones approach and ethics that we couldnt help but feel the connection in our conversations. We dont make that comparison lightly. Pieper has strong ideas, a commitment to Minnesotas small towns, and a here-to-serve-and-then-step-down approach that the state needs. In an magic-wand world, hed be elected to represent Houston and Fillmore counties, with Miller representing Winona County. In 2016s world, hes just not connected strongly enough to Winona County to be the kind of advocate Miller is. HOUSE 28B: Thomas Trehus Trehus is a 26-year-old first-time candidate who can discuss any issue facing the Legislature with the nuance and thoughtfulness of a five-term House member. He has presence and confidence beyond his years, and we believe he has the potential to be an exceptional, progressive state lawmaker. We were particularly impressed with his awareness of what it means to be a DFL candidate in a conservative, rural district roots in the district that go back multiple generations, advocacy for individual and property rights, a deep understanding of negotiating the kinds of divisive interests that often exist in smaller communities. He, like Pieper, would easily be a preferred candidate in any number of races, if he werent up against a strong, experienced incumbent in Davids, who has important work left undone in St. Paul. At the Winona League of Women Voters forum in September, I heard Brian Conner state I do my homework when describing his qualifications to be the next county commissioner for the 4th District, the central and west parts of Winona. I dont know what Conner means by I do my homework, but as I looked into his preparation for being a commissioner, I dont believe hes been doing what any serious candidate would do to prepare. Heres a few things I found: Conner did not show up for the three half-day budget working sessions held by the county board in August and September. To understand the county budget-making process and the topics that need attention in the 2017 budget, attending these discussions is the only way for Conner to get that essential information. Conner did not show up for any county board meetings in August and early September, where he could have learned how the board operates and the topics the board is currently considering. Conner said he will invite frac sand mining, processing, and transload operators into Winona County and has made no suggestions for how the county would pay for the additional county staff required to protect residents from the destruction this industry would bring to Winona County. Conner does not realize that portraying our African-American president as a monkey is racist when asked, he still thinks its a joke. Conner even misspelled commissioner in his filing document on the Winona County website. Thankfully, Greg Olson is well prepared to continue be the commissioner for the 4th District. We have seen Greg in action as a commissioner and we know he will do whats best for residents of Winona County. Greg has lived in the district all his life, is respectful to all, reviews all the information before meetings, shows up at all the county board meetings, and he supports a Winona county ban on all frac sand operations. Vote for Greg Olson. Today is Halloween. Black and orange are the colors that call out the ghosts and goblins, witches and zombies and all the scary creatures of the night. One of the best known of these is Dracula, the vampire. Among all the children trick-or-treating, there will be a Dracula or twofortunately for us looking to satisfy the sweet tooth and not the blood fang. Just like the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece and Rome have their origin in the psyche of humanity, at least this one of the monsters of Halloween has his origin in a real life monster: Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia (now Romania). When Bram Stoker was doing research for his famous horror novel Dracula (published in 1897), he not only read Transylvania Superstitions by Emily Gerard, but also William Wilkinsons book An Account of the Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia with Political Observation Relative to Them. One of the stand-out princes in the mid-15th century was the son of Vlad Dracul (Vlad the Dragon), namely Vlad III, who proudly changed his name to Draculason of the dragon, the inspiration for the title of Stokers book. History refers to him more as Vlad the Impaler because this was his favorite form of torture and execution. When he learned after being released from a Turkish prison that his father had been betrayed and buried alive, he returned home and invited hundreds of princes to a feast, after which he impaled every last one of them. It became known throughout the land that it was not the best honor to be invited to Vlads home for dinner. He was reported to dip his bread in the blood of the impaled after supper, finishing his meal at the table aloneat least as the only live member of the dinner party. Vlad played the powers that be in the area from the Christians in the West (Roman Empire) to the Muslims in the East (Ottoman Empire). He himself was in and out of favor with his neighbors throughout the decades that he attempted to rule. He drew blood from Christian and Muslim with equal fervor for survival and some would say for demonic pleasure. When the Ottomans campaigned against him at one point, they came across a deserted village only to discover the forest of the impaled. Vlad had skewered 20,000 men, women, and children ... quite a sight for the Turks and the sultan himself (reported by contemporary Greek historian Laonikos Chalkokondyles in The Histories). Thereafter in Ottoman literature he became known as Impaler Lord. Blood-thirsty Dracula of the gothic horror genre is the fanciful embodiment of evillurking in the dark to spoil that which is innocent and good. But, we do not cower before him. Because we know that Draculaas a vampirereally does not exist. He cannot see himself in the mirrormeaning there is no substance to him in reality. Our fears are mostly created in our own minds. Of course, we know that there are those who really are son of the Devil (meaning of Dracula in Romanian today): Caligula, Vlad III, Hitler, Stalin, Idi Amin, Osama bin Laden, Abubakar Shekau, and current leaders of ISIS, to name just a few. What of them? Dealing with them is not as easy as closing a book at the end of a scary story, keeping the night light on, and then going to Great America for a fun afternoon the next day. Only at great cost are they dealt with. Eventually, they are buried for all their sordid efforts. They are chronicled in history as the worst in humanity, and even traces of them are eradicated from sight, as is happening with Hitlers birth house in Braunau am Inn, Austria. An ancient songwriter penned these words: Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning. As with the Dracula of horror shows, the sun always chases away the dark. Dracula returns to his crypt because he cannot tolerate the light, which burns his skin. So too in the darkest periods of history; the night will surrender to the day. The hope and future for humanity will be found in the light, not the shadows. Let the sunlight of hope replace the darkness of fear in your life today and every day. Mark J. Molldrem is a writer, community volunteer, and daily host of Joy in the Morning on WBEV. He lives in Beaver Dam with his wife, Shirley. WordPowerSolutions@gmail.com George Ferriter is running for State Assembly, District 42, and he should be elected on Nov. 8. George stands for all the things that have made our state of Wisconsin great in the past. George stands for: Labor Rights. Quoting George, he says "All workers have the right to organize. All workers have the right to stand up for the value of their work. Organized Labor is a foundation of our middle class, and supports our American way of life." Fixing Our Roads. Our roads have dropped to third worst in the county. (U.S. Dept. of Transportation) George will work to ensure those who benefit most or damage the roads the most will pay their fair share. He feels there are ways to put money back into roads without a tax increase. Protecting Our Water. George will work to keep our water clean and healthy. He knows water is an important resource for recreation and our local economy. It is essential to our health and well-being. Returing Taxpayer Money to Public Education. George will work to stop $750 million in taxpayer dollars from going from public schools to unaccountable private schools. Caring for our Vets. George served in the military with eight years of active service and another 18 years of Reserve and National Guard service, finishing up in the Wisconsin Air Guard. He will be in favor of fully funding mental health and substance abuse programs for veterans. George knows there is no greater sacrifice than defending our nation. Our vets deserve honor, respect and proper care in return. George himself is educated as a mechanical engineer and spent most of his career working in Wisconsin manufacturing, building big diesel engines at Fairbanks Morse in Beloit. He has served in local government as village president in Doylestown for two terms and where he still remains on the village board. He is also an elected delegate to the Wisconsin Conservation Congress. Please vote for George Ferriter on Nov. 8. He will do us proud in Madison. Julie Flemming, Fox Lake Robin Kvalos trip to Washington D.C. wasnt a vacation. The Portage High School principal earlier this year tabbed Wisconsin Secondary State Principal of the Year met with federal policymakers last month to discuss the needs of local schools. She received her award at an event hosted by National Association of Secondary School Principals, attending with the 49 other winning principals who Kvalo said do the same thing I do every day. It was great to connect with them, Kvalo said of her peers. The same things we struggle with attendance, getting kids motivated to work hard it doesnt matter if youre in Ohio or Wisconsin, the struggles are similar. The key element to NASSPs gathering in the nations capital was to involve principals in the national conversation about education, NASSP Executive Director JoAnn Bartoletti stated in a news release. Accordingly, Kvalo in her four days in Washington met with Wisconsins Sen. Ron Johnson, Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Rep. Glenn Grothman. The biggest thing we emphasized to legislators was how often theyre authorized (in a bill) to go up to a certain amount (of money) but fall short of that, Kvalo said. They either didnt authorize it at all or (provided) not nearly enough money. Kvalo talked to lawmakers about supporting Title 1 grants that support disadvantaged children, grants that are based on the number of free and reduced lunches students families qualify for per district. In 2007 the number of high school students who received free and reduced lunches in Portage was at 19 percent, but that number has since grown to about 43 percent this year. So if you think about that, thats less than 10 years where weve seen that (figure) more than double, Kvalo said. Kvalo pointed to a host of things that likely play into that rising figure, from a struggling economy to the citys disproportionate number of rentals versus home ownership, the latter being a popular topic among city officials. Portage has its share of good-paying jobs, she added, but theres plenty of room for growth. We have wonderful businesses in our community, but I dont think we have enough to support a standard of living that our families, some of our families, can get above that poverty level. Kvalo also spoke to lawmakers about showing their full support for Title II grants for professional development and literacy, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) grants supporting special education, and grants supporting Career and Technical Education programs. The Perkins CTE grants, Kvalo added as an example, is an area where schools dont get near the money we could get. We need to pay educators more Kvalo had quite the conversation with Johnson about the national teacher shortage, particularly in the area of technology education. Sen. Johnson is a manufacturing guy, and so I just kind of tapped into him for his thoughts on how we can get more young people picking the teaching field in the technical areas, if he had ideas on incentives out there to maybe offset college costs, in loan forgiveness (for) working in impoverished district. I just wondered if he was proposing or knew of anything out there that might encourage students who have some skills in technical area that would encourage them to go into education to become a teacher instead of going into the private industry. Did Johnson seem receptive to such ideas? Not really, Kvalo said, noting that while both he and Grothman heard what we said, their respective records in supporting education dont inspire much confidence. Conversely, however, Kvalo commended Baldwin for always supporting anything that has to do with education. Im sure shes pushing for full authorization (in grants), Kvalo said of Baldwin. I think its important we come up with, as a state, some incentive to get our young people who have the natural talent to be good teachers that we are encouraging them to go into education, and right now, theyre not, Kvalo said of the teacher shortage. I will say education has been an outstanding field for me to have chosen, and we need young people going into education to be those great teachers and administrators of the future. I believe with the high cost of college, we have to as a state and certainly on the federal level, come up with the incentives to go into education. The bottom line is we need to pay educators more. They really are the gateway into every career, so we want the best and the brightest in the classroom teaching, so we have to relook at how we fund teachers. I think thats why we have such a shortage. Overall, the NASSP conference in Washington represented a nice mix of celebration and leadership workshops, Kvalo said. It was amazing to get together with these people, she said. It was a great week. Allergan plc, a pharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and commercializes branded pharmaceutical, device, biologic, surgical, and regenerative medicine products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: US Specialized Therapeutics, US General Medicine, and International. It offers a portfolio of products in various therapeutic areas, including medical aesthetics and dermatology, eye care, neuroscience, urology, gastrointestinal, women's health, and anti-infective therapeutic products. The company also offers breast implants and tissue expanders; and RM-131 (relamorelin), a peptide ghrelin agonist for the treatment of diabetic gastroparesis. In addition, it develops medical and cosmetic treatments; therapies for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and other liver diseases; inhibitor for the treatment of psoriasis and other autoimmune disorders; atopic dermatitis drug candidate; peri-ocular rings for extended drug delivery and reducing elevated intraocular pressure in glaucoma patients; and treatments for neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease. Further, the company develops RST-001, a novel gene therapy for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa; small molecule therapeutics for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases; topical medicines for fat reduction; and delivery system and botulinum toxin-based prescription products. It has collaboration, option, and license agreement with Lyndra, Inc.; and strategic alliance and option agreement with Editas Medicine, Inc. Allergan plc also has licensing agreements with Assembly Biosciences, Inc.; MedImmune; and Heptares Therapeutics, Ltd. The company was formerly known as Actavis plc and changed its name to Allergan plc in June 2015. Allergan plc was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. Maximus, Inc. provides business process services (BPS) to government health and human services programs. It operates through three segments: U.S. Services, U.S. Federal Services, and Outside the U.S. The U.S. Services segment offers various BPS solutions, such as program administration, appeals and assessments, and related consulting works for U.S. state and local government programs, including the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, child support programs, Preadmission Screening and Resident Reviews, and Independent Developmental Disability assessments. This segment also provides program eligibility support and enrollment; centralized multilingual customer contact centers, multichannel, and digital self-service options for enrollment; application assistance and independent health plan choice counseling; beneficiary outreach, education, eligibility, enrollment, and redeterminations; person-centered independent disability, long-term sick, and other health assessments; and specialized consulting services. The U.S. Federal Services segment offers centralized citizen engagement centers and support services; document and record management; case management, citizen support, and consumer education; independent medical reviews and worker's compensation benefit appeals; Medicare and Medicaid appeals; and federal marketplace eligibility appeals. This segment also provides modernization of systems and information technology infrastructure; infrastructure operations and support services; software development, operations, and management services; and data analytics services. The Outside the U.S. segment offers BPS solutions for governments and commercial clients outside the United States, including health and disability assessments, program administration for employment services, and other job seeker-related services. The company was incorporated in 1975 and is headquartered in Tysons, Virginia. ONEOK, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in gathering, processing, storage, and transportation of natural gas in the United States. It operates through Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, and Natural Gas Pipelines segments. The company owns natural gas gathering pipelines and processing plants in the Mid-Continent and Rocky Mountain regions. It also gathers, treats, fractionates, and transports natural gas liquids (NGL), as well as stores, markets, and distributes NGL products. The company owns NGL gathering and distribution pipelines in Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico, Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming, and Colorado; terminal and storage facilities in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois; and NGL distribution and refined petroleum products pipelines in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana, as well as owns and operates truck- and rail-loading, and -unloading facilities connected to NGL fractionation, storage, and pipeline assets. In addition, it operates regulated interstate and intrastate natural gas transmission pipelines and natural gas storage facilities. Further, the company owns and operates a parking garage in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma; and leases excess office space. It operates 17,500 miles of natural gas gathering pipelines; 1,500 miles of FERC-regulated interstate natural gas pipelines; 5,100 miles of state-regulated intrastate transmission pipeline; six NGL storage facilities; and eight NGL product terminals. It serves integrated and independent exploration and production companies; NGL and natural gas gathering and processing companies; crude oil and natural gas production companies; propane distributors; municipalities; ethanol producers; and petrochemical, refining, and NGL marketing companies, as well as natural gas distribution and electric generation companies, producers, processors, and marketing companies. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. USANA Health Sciences, Inc. develops, manufactures, and sells science-based nutritional and personal care products. The company offers USANA nutritional products that comprise essentials/CellSentials, such as vitamin and mineral supplements that provide a foundation of total body nutrition for various age groups; optimizers comprising targeted supplements that are designed to meet cardiovascular, skeletal/structural, and digestive health needs; and foods that include meal replacement shakes, snack bars, and other related products. It also provides Celavive, a skin care regimen for various skin care types and ethnicities; and other products for prenatal, infant, and young child age groups. In addition, the company offers materials and online tools to assist associates in building their businesses, as well as in marketing products. It offers its products directly in the Asia Pacific, the Americas, and Europe, as well as online. The company has a research collaboration agreement with Beijing University of Chinese Medicine for research in the field of traditional Chinese medicine; and National Sports Training Bureau. USANA Health Sciences, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. Deckers Outdoor Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, markets, and distributes footwear, apparel, and accessories for casual lifestyle use and high-performance activities. The company offers premium footwear, apparel, and accessories under the UGG brand name; sandals, shoes, and boots under the Teva brand name; and relaxed casual shoes and sandals under the Sanuk brand name. It also provides footwear and apparel for ultra-runners and athletes under the Hoka brand name; and fashion casual footwear using other plush materials under the Koolaburra brand. The company sells its products through department stores, domestic independent action sports and outdoor specialty footwear retailers, and larger national retail chains, as well as online retailers. It also sells its products directly to consumers through its retail stores and e-commerce websites, as well as distributes its products through distributors and retailers in the United States, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, Latin America, and internationally. As of March 31, 2022, it had 149 retail stores, including 75 concept stores and 74 outlet stores worldwide. The company was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Goleta, California. Smart & Final Stores, Inc. operates as a food retailer in the United States. It operates in two segments, Smart & Final and Smart Foodservice. The company's stores offer fresh perishables and everyday grocery items, such as produce, meat and deli, dairy and cheese, grocery, and beverage products, as well as paper and packaging, and restaurant equipment and janitorial supplies. It also provides various private label products under the First Street, Sun Harvest, Simply Value, La Romanella, Montecito, Iris, and Ambiance brands. The company sells its products to household and business customers; restaurants; caterers; and various other foodservice businesses, such as food trucks and coffee houses through vendors and suppliers. As of December 30, 2018, it operated 326 grocery and foodservice stores, including 59 Smart & Final stores, 201 Smart & Final Extra! stores, and 66 Smart Foodservice Warehouse stores located in California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, and Utah, as well as 15 stores in Northwestern Mexico operated through a joint venture. Smart & Final Stores, Inc. was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Commerce, California. Justice McClanahan shares '72-hour rule' with W&M law students From My Heart to Yours: During her Oct. 17 visit, Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan of the Supreme Court of Virginia talked with students about her "72-hour rule" and how to thrive during trying times. Photo by David F. Morrill Photo - of - Hide Caption Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan '80 of the Supreme Court of Virginia recently spoke with students over lunch during an Oct. 17 visit to W&M Law School. In her talk, titled From My Heart to Yours: Managing the Stress of Law and Life, she gave law students pointers on how to manage stress in law school and the practice of law. Her visit was made possible by W&M Law Schools Richard A. Williamson Fellowship Program. I decided it was not the day for me to talk about complex intellectual questions regarding judicial philosophy, policy and jurisprudence because, after all, fortunately or unfortunately, you can figure out what all my positions are by reading the opinions, concurrences and dissents I have written over 14 years, McClanahan said to appreciative laughter from the audience. McClanahan earned her undergraduate degree at William & Mary in 1980 before going on to study at the University of Dayton School of Law. Renowned for her work in natural resources law, she was a partner at Penn, Stuart and Eskridge, served as chief deputy attorney general of Virginia, and sat on the Court of Appeals of Virginia before being sworn in as the fourth female justice in the history of the Supreme Court of Virginia in 2011. The focus of her W&M Law School lecture was not solely on her career in the law but also on her battle with breast cancer that began almost 10 years ago. McClanahan recounted a wonderful Christmas with her children and family in 2006, a day before she received a concerning call from her doctor. By Jan. 3, 2007, McClanahan had officially been diagnosed with cancer. What followed, she said, was surgery, chemotherapy, pain, nausea, and my personal favorite baldness. She was a judge on the Court of Appeals at the time, and at first she struggled with how best to face her illness and to continue to do the things she was passionate about. It was during chemotherapy that she developed a coping mechanism she calls the 72-hour rule. It dawned on me that the absolute worst time during this experience was this 72-hour window after I hit the wall. I noticed that after that time period, things didnt get better; they werent miraculously over. But I could actually, after 72 hours, look at the world with more optimism. I had a different outlook after 72 hours, McClanahan said. She said her attitude and plans for the future always improved after that period, and she encouraged students to take the same approach to law school. Before turning in a paper, after a breakup or at the end of exams, McClanahan advised that students always take 72 hours to let their outlook improve before taking further action. Its hard to think about anything for 72 hours [in the age of Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter] but at its core, the essence of practicing law is thinking, she said, as she encouraged students to take mental breaks throughout their careers. The Williamson Fellowship Program is made possible by the generosity of the family and friends of the late Professor Richard A. Williamson. Williamson was a member of the William & Mary Law School faculty for 37 years. He also served in senior leadership roles as dean of admission, vice dean and acting dean, and was William & Marys coordinator of legal affairs for 10 years. In 2004, he received the universitys Thomas Jefferson Award, which recognizes members of the faculty for significant service, influence and leadership. Williamson Fellows are lawyers of extraordinary caliber drawn from law firms, the government and the bench. Past fellows have included the Right Hon. Beverley McLachlin, Steven Perles J.D. 75, Job Taylor J.D. 71, William Hoffman 67, J.D. 77, and Kenneth Feinberg. China News on Women Sorry, the page you requested was not found. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Womenofchina.cn, try visiting the Womenofchina Home page Hitachi-GE to develop UK and Welsh BWR expertise 31 October 2016 Share Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy announced today it is to provide industry advice to Imperial College and Bangor University's newly formed Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) Research Hub and Network, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding. Cooperation will include part-time deployment of a researcher to Bangor, and building on the existing program of Japanese internships for UK students. From left to right: John Hughes, Kumiaki Moryia and Michael Bluck at the signing ceremony today (Image: Hitachi) Hitachi-GE is already supporting nuclear development in North Wales, providing the UK ABWR reactor to Horizon Nuclear Power for Wylfa Newydd, under contract to delivery team Menter Newydd. President and Representative Director of Hitachi-GE, Hidetoshi Takehara, said: "This is about helping create a deeper and broader pool of BWR expertise here in Wales and across the UK, supporting the engineers and industry of the future ... With development of the UK's first BWR proposed just up the road at Wylfa Newydd, this scheme helps ensure that project is a springboard to the UK becoming a world-power in its domestic expertise on BWR technology." Michael Bluck, director of the Centre for Nuclear Engineering at Imperial, said the scheme will "examine research needs and formulate projects to support the continued production of low carbon, baseload electricity for the UK and many other countries for decades to come." John Hughes, vice chancellor of Bangor University, said the university will "continue to ensure that the benefits from the proposed investment in new nuclear facilities utilising this technology at Wylfa Newydd will be maximised both in North Wales and within the wider UK". The BWR research hub was formed through a memorandum of understanding between Imperial College and Bangor University in June. It is led by a steering group chaired by Imperial College's Robin Grimes and will shortly appoint a director to coordinate its activities. Also on the steering group are the founding partners (Imperial College and Bangor University); BWR technical partners - Hitachi-GE and Horizon Nuclear Power; supply chain partners such as Amec-Foster-Wheeler; the Welsh Government; the UK Government; and other interested parties such as the EPSRC and the National Nuclear Laboratory. Hitachi has participated in the design, development and construction of 23 nuclear power plants within Japan, including BWR and four Advanced Boiling Water Reactors. The ABWR is operational at four units at three sites in Japan and a further five units are in construction; two in Taiwan and three in Japan. Two UK ABWRs will be deployed at Wylfa Newydd, generating around 2.7 GWe between them. Wylfa Newydd is being developed by Horizon Nuclear Power, a 100% subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd. Established by Hitachi and GE in July 2007, Hitachi-GE has been involved with 23 reactors in Japan to date, including those currently under construction. Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics Kazakhstan is a unitary dominant-party republic located in the central region of the Asian continent. The capital is Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) while the largest city is Almaty. The country has an estimated population of 17,993,500 with a population density of 16.82 people per square mile. The Kazakhs are the predominant ethnic groups, making up 63.6% of the total population. Kazakhstan has a very high literacy level with compulsory secondary level education, and the adult literacy level stands at 99.5%. Biggest Cities In Kazakhstan Almaty Almaty was first settled in 10th century BC but was designated city status in 1867. It covers an area of 263 square miles with a population of 1,703,481 square miles. The city served as the capital of the country from 1929 to 1977 when the government relocated the capital to Astana. Today it is still the major commercial and cultural city of Kazakhstan. In 1887, a major earthquake almost destroyed the entire city in less than fifteen minutes. Almaty is a relatively cold city with an average temperature being 10 degrees Celsius. Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) Nur-Sultan is the capital of Kazakhstan. It is located in the northern parts of the country on the Ishim River. It was established in 1830 as Akmoly and has changed the name several times; it was named Astana in 1998 and then Nur-Sultan in 2019. The city covers an area of 274.2 square miles and a population of 860,368 people. It was made the capital in December 1997. Shymkent Shymkent was founded in the 12th century as Chimkent and the name was changed in 1993 in a bid by the government to apply Kazakh names to cities. The total population is approximately 854,500 living in an area of 134 square miles. Shymkent is traditionally known to produce lead, and a lead smelting plant was established in 1934. The air pollution in the city is very high due to the smelting of lead. Other industries include those producing zinc, karakul pelts, textiles, foodstuffs, and pharmaceuticals. Karaganda Karaganda was founded in 1931, and today has a population of 459,778 people. It is the capital of the Karaganda region and is the fourth largest city in the country in terms of population. The name Karaganda emanates from caragana bushes which are found in abundance in the area. In 1962, the city experienced the worst ever electromagnetic pulse (EMP) effects after its electrical power plant was set ablaze by currents induced from a USSR power cable which was shallow buried. Other Big Cities In Kazakhstan There are other cities in Kazakhstan with a population of more than 250,000. They include Taraz, Aktobe, Pavlodar, Oskemen, Semey, and Oral. Events Leading Up to the Civil War in Sierra Leone Although the Civil War of Sierra Leone did not officially begin until 1991, several events occurred in the decades leading up to the 90s that ultimately pushed the country into violent conflict. Sierra Leone gained its independence from the UK in 1961 and the following years were marked by significant government corruption, inefficiency, and overall failure. Public elections were violent and unsafe, and the educational system began to disintegrate. The situation was further complicated when Siaka Stevens, the third prime minister, took office in 1968. He served for 17 years and during his term, created a one-party political system which led to the further dismantling of public administrative offices and extreme levels of corruption. In 1985, the fourth prime minister, Joseph Momoh, proved to be one and the same. Under his watch, Sierra Leone suffered an absolute economic crisis. Public officials were left unpaid and, in retaliation, many looted and destroyed government property and offices. This included public school teachers which led to the complete collapse of the public educational system. By 1991, Sierra Leone was one of the most impoverished countries in the world, and its citizens were dissatisfied with their living conditions. The Conflict Begins With so many people fed up and the country in a desperate situation, a rebel group began to form. This group, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), captured the attention of many individuals with their messages of rebellion. The RUF united with the Liberian rebel group, National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), and on March 23, 1991, the two attempted a coup detat on the government of Momoh. RUF was able to gain control of large areas of southern and eastern land. The military of Sierra Leone responded with their own coup detat in April of 1992. Fighting between the military and RUF continued until 1995 when the government hired a private military company to fight RUF and by 1996, RUF was ready to sign the Abidjan Peace Accord. Before peace was established, however, the private military forces withdrew, and RUF continued fighting. Continued Conflict And Political Instability The government was once again overthrown in 1997 by a group of military officers, who took control and referred to themselves and their government as the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC). The AFRC and RUF united their fight and claimed that the war had ended. Violence in the form of robbery, physical assault, and rape took over throughout the country. The following year, the armed forces of the Economic Community of West African States took control of the western region of Sierra Leone. The joined RUF and AFRC troops found themselves pushed into a small area in the northern part of the country by January of 1999. End Of The War RUF and the government of Sierra Leone signed the Lome Peace Accord on March 27, 1999. The commander of RUF, Foday Sankoh, took the position of Vice President of the country and was given control of the national diamond mines as part of the negotiation. Disarmament of the rebel forces did not go as planned and they regained strength in May of 2000. The UN peacekeeping forces lost control, and the UK decided to get involved. The UK, with support from the Guinea Air Force, defeated RUF and peace was finally declared on January 18, 2002. War Crimes And Human Rights Violations After 11 years of civil war, more than 120,000 people were killed, and millions more fled the country in response to the violence and insecurity. Over 5,000 children were recruited as child soldiers, drugged, and forced to participate in crimes against humanity. These children were recruited under threats of violence against their families. Young girls were used as domestic and sex slaves. After training and indoctrination, child soldiers were often required to perform violent raids against their own villages in order to prove their loyalty to the movement. RUF forces also carried out mass amputations of civilians arms, legs, ears, and lips, leaving tens of thousands of people with mutilations. The Natural Resource Curse A resource curse occurs when a country rich in natural resources does not experience expected social and economic development. Typically, natural resources foster economic growth. In some cases, however, a country experiences negative social, economic, and political results instead. Sierra Leone is one of the several sub-Saharan African countries where the presence of natural resources has resulted in political turmoil, violent conflict, and extreme underdevelopment. The most prevalent natural resource in Sierra Leone is the diamond. Blood Diamonds: The Fuel Behind The Conflict The major focus of the RUF and AFRC campaign was to take control of the countrys diamond mines. The diamond mines have been the source of corruption and personal gain by government personnel since the 1930s. The DeBeers diamond company once financed mining efforts in Sierra Leone and provided a legal export trade route for the valuable gems. They stopped their involvement in 1984, causing the government to lose revenue. By the late 1980s, the diamonds were being traded and sold illegally by private individuals. Attempts by the government of Sierra Leone to stop this corruption were unsuccessful. Blood diamonds became the fuel that fed the civil war fires. Blood diamonds are any diamonds that have been mined in a zone of conflict and sold for profit to finance war efforts. Alluvial diamonds are easily found within riverbeds and along river banks and can be obtained with simple tools. Extracting alluvial diamonds involves digging with hands or shovels and sifting the mud and gravel with sieves and river water. One miner can extract multiple karats of diamonds on a daily basis in this manner. The RUF rebels took advantage of the easily accessible alluvial diamonds and the lack of government regulations surrounding the industry. This combination allowed members of RUF to sell blood diamonds to obtain weapons. Civilians living in diamond mining zones were forcibly removed from their homes so that the RUF could maintain control over the mines. Many of the blood diamonds from Sierra Leone were traded to the Liberian president, Charles G. Taylor, in exchange for weapons and military training from the AFRC. It has been argued that controlling the diamond mines, rather than overthrowing the corrupt government, was the real reason behind the decade-long war. Whether or not this is true will likely remain a mystery. What is certain, however, is that the rebel groups would not have been able to gain power without access to the blood diamonds. The Gebel Barkal area contains remnants of African, Egyptian, Kushite, and Arabian cultures. This site is considered to be an important place in which the Kush Kingdom of Africa has had their culture preserved to the prestigious level of a UNESCO world heritage site. The area is one of the earliest known settled areas in Africa. The mountain of Jebel Barkal and the surrounding area of archaeological importance is collectively known as Napata. This area houses 13 temples. 3 palaces, and at least 9 Egyptian pyramids. 5. Description and History - This site has great significance to African, Arabian, and Egyptian histories and cultures alike. The Egyptian empire considered Gebel Barkal as it's southern most point of rule during it's reign of the area. The mountain and surrounding areas served as a burial site for royals with the earliest of these funerals happening as early as the 3rd Century BC in the area of El-Kurru. This area has been considered a sacred site since 1500 BC, with Egyptians believing that their God, Amon, was born atop Gebel Barkal. Once European explorers had reached Africa in the early 1800s, these explorers and archaeologists to the continent recorded evidence of these temples and ruins as early as the 1820s. It was not until 1916 that an American archaeological expedition took place, with these scientists coming from from Harvard and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston respectively. 4. Tourism and Education - There is still a considerable amount of archaeological and anthropological research yet to be carried out at these sites. Historically, conflicts in Sudan has negatively affected tourism and consequently, this site is still somewhat of a tourist secret. Most tourist reviews found online are positive due to the lack of crowds, some tourists even claiming they had the entire area to themselves when visiting. 3. Uniqueness - Some of the larger temples in this area, such as Amon's Tomb, remain to be considered sacred to some of the local residents. Gebel Barkal is a small mountain, standing at only 320 feet n elevation, and this minuscule mountain was used as a landmark by traders and explorers historically due to the ease in which travelers can see the peak in an otherwise non-mountainous area. When looking at this area in pictures, the mountain of Jebel Barkal is obvious and stands out with no other hills or peaks in the surrounding area. Although this site is 776 Miles from GIza, there are still Egyptian pyramids in an area called Nuri. This location also houses pyramid tombs from hundreds, if not thousands of years ago. 2. Natural Surroundings, Sights, and Sounds - Gebel Barkal is located on the west bank of the Nile River in northern Sudan. This area is notorious for it's hot, unforgiving desert climate. The closest city is called Karima city, and the region is called Nubia. Gebel Barkal is approximately 250 miles from the capital of Sudan, Khartoum. The mountain was used as a landmark in the important historical trade route between Arabia, central Africa, and Egypt due to the location of the mountain giving an easier route across the great Nile river. This area also has desert mammal inhabitants such as gazelle and wild dogs. There are also an abundance of lizards and other reptiles, as well as bats. 1. Threats and Conservation - This precious area is protected by the Antiquities Protection Ordinance of 1905, which has been amended and extended a number of times since 1905 in order to preserve the site. A Management Council of the Gebel Barkal sites has recently been established, and this site is also jointly managed by teams of local archaeological technicians as well as a supervisor. Although these areas are beautiful, longstanding conflicts and tribal wars in Sudan have negatively affected local wildlife as well as historical preservation infrastructure. Today we find this area of Sudan relatively stable and wildlife is recovering slowly. Cows (illustration) By: Tanya Malhotra Police launched an investigation after three elderly people caused a herd of cows to run after them by waving carrots in the air, according to police in the United Kingdom. Gloucestershire police said that the incident unfolded in Minchinhampton Common. According to witnesses at the scene, three elderly people were traveling in an old Nissan, attracting cattle behind them with carrots. A woman was sitting in the trunk of the car while waving carrots in the air. The woman sat there, laughing and holding carrots for the cows. Hundreds of cows ran after the car, which traveled on the grass. A man and another woman were in the passenger seat and were waving carrots as well. They were all laughing despite endangering the cows. The cows also seemed to be in distress as they were swinging around their heads. So far, no arrests have been made. A young man wanted to make a point about racism in the United States, but his plan backfired when he was exposed for a liar by police. 20-year-old Khalil Cavil of Texas was working at the Saltgrass Steak House in Odessa when he claimed he was discriminated against because of his Muslim name. Cavil took Azalea lighting cigarette from lit cigarette By: Feng Qian (Scroll down for video) Tourists are flocking to a zoo in North Korea, where a chimpanzee performs tricks with cigarettes. Azalea, who is also known as Dallae, smokes about a pack of cigarettes a day at the newly opened zoo in Pyongyang. A spokesperson for the zoo said that the 19-year-old chimpanzee does not inhale the cigarette smoke. The smoking animal is a major part of the public performances. About once an hour, a trainer hands it a lighter, and the chimpanzee manages to light the cigarette on its own. Azalea also taught itself how to light a cigarette from a lit cigarette. A video of the show was uploaded to YouTube, where it went viral. The chimpanzee is also able to touch its nose, bow to tourists and dance. Thousands of tourists visit the zoo each day. After three weeks on strike, Harvard University Dining Service (HUDS) workers returned to work last week with a new contract that appears to satisfy the main issues of health care and wages that prompted the strike. The agreement was ratified in a 537-1 vote Wednesday by members of UNITE HERE Local 26, which represents the workers, concluding the 22-day strike that was the first for the workers since 1983. The strike had won significant support from both students and faculty at the Harvard campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Following the announcement of the strike on September 17, more than a dozen student organizations at Harvard Law School released a statement supporting the action. More than 3,000 students signed a petition started by the undergraduate Students Labor Action Movement in support of the workers demands. A number of organizations endorsed the strike including Harvards Undergraduate Council, the Law School Student Government, the Kennedy School Student Government, and the editorial board of the Crimson, the student newspaper. Even the Boston Globe published official endorsements of the strike and both the Boston and Cambridge City Councils passed resolutions of support. Students rejected calls by the Harvard administration for student employees to cross the picket line and scab on the HUDS workers and instead joined the picket lines and organized class walkouts and occupations in support. Students at Harvard College and other graduate programs flooded the voicemail inboxes of the 13 fellows who sit on the board of Harvard Corporation with messages of support for the HUDS workers. According to UNITE HERE Local 26, the union representing HUDS, employees would not see an increase to their out-of-pocket health care costs with the contract, which will last five years. Local 26 President Brian Lang told a crowd gathered at the First Parish Church as voting took place, we have achieved every goal without exception, with no concessions to Harvard. A Diversity and Equality Committee will also be created to address concerns regarding diversity and equal treatment of Harvard dining hall employees, according to a Local 26 press release. While the new contract appears to satisfy the main demands of the union, these demands were based on maintaining the status quo on health benefits and obtaining minimal wage increases. Under the new contract workers earnings remain barely above poverty level in a metropolitan area where rents and other living costs are far above the national average. Harvard had demanded huge increases in both health care premiums and out-of-pocket costs. The proposal by Harvard would have required a worker earning $30,000 a year to contribute a premium of $233 a month in addition to co-pays, deductibles and out-of-pocket costs. This amounts exceeds what can be found on the Massachusetts Health Connector, the states version of Obamacare. Harvard eventually backed down, agreeing to cover copayments as workers are moved to a new health plan, beginning in 2019. The costs will be covered by a flexible savings account paid for by Harvard. While the university made a significant concession in agreeing to cover the higher costs, Harvard achieved the goal of shifting workers onto the new plan, opening the way for imposing these out-of-pocket costs fully onto workers in the future. The deal gives full-time workers a guaranteed annual income of $35,000, but the wage increases are minimal: 2.5 percent per year. The remainder of the increased income is in the form of a stipend for the period when dining halls are closed during for the summer and winter breaks. Under the new contract full-time workers will receive an annual $2,400 stipend, rising to $3,000 in 2020. The stipend amounts to about $185 per week for 13 weeks, far less than the $800 per week workers earn during the academic year. For employees who work fewer hours during the academic year, the stipend will be prorated, meaning it will be adjusted in relation to the number of hours an employee works. Only full-time employees who are available to work throughout the year will make $35,000 a year. At some other universities such as Yale dining workers belong to the same union as workers in other trades and are able to work year-round. Many on the picket lines were hoping for a similar agreement with Harvard. According to the MIT living wage calculator, $35,000 for a full-time worker translates to less than $17 an hour based on the 2080 hours in a year that characterizes full-time work. This is barely above the minimum living wage for one adult of $13.34 and below that for one adult, plus child, at $27.49. University spokesperson Tania DeLuzuriaga wrote in a statement that the union agreed to changes in retiree health benefits that will make their insurance plan consistent with all of Harvards exempt employees and 5,000 members of other unions on campus. It is unclear what these changes are. According to the Human Resources site, the 2016 costs for health insurance range between $91 and $135 for an individual and $246 and $364 for a family in the lowest tier, set at earnings of less than $70,000 a year. Harvard has said it will create a new premium contribution tier for employees who make less than $55,000 per year, in which the university will contribute 87 percent of the cost of the lowest-cost plan, but this wont be implemented until 2019. As Harvard returns to business as usual, contract negotiations for dining hall workers at Northeastern University in Boston, also organizing in Local 26, are expected to begin soon. Janitors at nearby Tufts University voted Thursday to authorize a strike if a new contract agreement isnt reached with the schools maintenance contractor by October 31. Some 200 workers who clean the university voted unanimously for a strike. The janitors work for a building services provider for commercial and industrial properties, Newton-based C&W Services. According to Local 32BJ of the Services Employees International Union, which represents the workers, demands are similar to those raised in the HUDS strikecost-of-living wage increases, opportunities for more full-time jobs and affordable health care benefits. Mexico Secretary of Defense, General Salvador Cienfuegos, has called for the countrys military to intervene even more directly into the 10-year-old war on drugs. Speaking at a seminar entitled National defense and international humanitarian law, Cienfuegos asked the government to recruit more troops and create a legal framework to allow the military to operate with impunity. There is a drain [on the army], and its obvious why: we are working all over the country, at all times, in the mountains and in the cities, Cienfuegos declared. He warned that if the government wanted the army to do more, it would have to supply more people. While the ostensible target of the Mexican police and military has been the drug cartels, in reality this conflict has served as a pretext to clamp down on social opposition. Large sections of the Mexican government of President Enrique Pena Nieto and the Mexican ruling class as a whole are among the beneficiaries of the drug trade and are intimately tied to both the drug cartels and US imperialism. Given that the Mexican military has until now operated with carte blanche in the towns and countryside, Cienfuegos legal framework can only mean blanket immunity for soldiers who commit abuses. The generals demand that the military have a more direct say in shaping government policy can only be taken as a grave warning to the Mexican working class. In his comments General Cienfuegos remarked that the army had suffered from fatigue in its 10-year war against various drug gangs. When reporters asked about the lack of a legal body to monitor the army he contemptuously declared, Ask the legislators, not me; I do not make the laws. The Mexican newspaper La Jornada noted that the three main political parties were taken aback by the generals blunt comments, calling them unusual. Patricio Martinez, senator of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), was quoted as saying, We need to correct, amend the Constitution so that the army can assist with civil authority. In comments last March, Cienfuegos called the deployment of the military in the drug war a mistake and said that corruption in the police force had to be stopped, adding ominously, If we dont do it, there is no one else who will. The army is responsible for much of the violence wracking Mexico today. It has now been revealed that an army unit was on the scene the night that 43 Ayotzinapa teaching students were kidnapped by police and presumably murdered in 2014. The 17th Army battalion protected the police and refused to help the survivors. Cienfuegos also absolved the army of any responsibility for the Ayotzinapa massacre, as well as the army operation in Tlataya in which 22 civilians were massacred. In the Ayotzinapa case, Cienfuegos declared that the army had absolutely no responsibility. In the Tlataya massacre, Cienfuegos noted that four soldiers had been released without charges, while another three had yet to be tried. Since the beginning of the drug war under President Felipe Calderon (2006-2012), 80,000 have died and 30,000 have disappeared. The Obama Administration has been instrumental in making sure the Mexican military is armed with the latest weaponry and logistics, providing more than $1.5 billion in US arms, equipment and training between 2008 and 2015. The militarization of Mexican society is being presented as a crusade against not only drugs, but corruption and human rights abuses as well. In Veracruz, Governor Javier Duarte of the PRI was issued an arrest warrant on suspicion of ties to organized crime and money laundering. Guillermo Padres, a member of the PAN who was governor of Sonora, was also accused of corruption and has been pursued by authorities. President Pena Nieto is trying desperately to refurbish his image as an enemy of political corruption, especially after his own complicity in the Ayotzinapa massacre and other state attacks against teachers and workers becomes public knowledge. In a related development, a federal judge based in Mexico City, Vicente Antonio Bermudez Zacarias, was shot dead in broad daylight while jogging. Zacarias was involved in legal rulings in the case of the 43 missing students. The media has accused gangs of being behind the killing; however, given the political sensitivity of Zacarias rulings, a government assassination cannot be ruled out. The former police chief of Iguala, Felipe Flores, was also detained by the government after more than two years on the run. Flores had disappeared after the events of September 26, 2014, when the students were last seen in the custody of police. In the official story, the students were handed over to a local gang who murdered them, incinerated their bodies and dumped the ashes in a nearby river. Numerous forensics experts have since concluded this story to be impossible. Flores arrest may shed new light as to the true fate of the 43 missing students. While the army and Cienfuegos have sought to project an apolitical public image in relation to the countrys worsening violence, the military has always sought to maintain the status quo in Mexico. The intervention of the army in political life, if history is any guide, has never been in the interest of the working class. The history of Latin America in the 1970s and 1980s, and its CIA-backed military-police dictatorships, is a bloody reminder of this basic fact. Mexico is not the only country to militarize its police force in the face of worsening violence. El Salvador and Honduras, two of the most violent countries in the world, have deployed the military to ostensibly fight gangs. In Argentina, President Mauricio Macri declared a public national emergency to pave the way for the militarization of the countrys anti-drug war. In the face of worsening social inequality and rising social opposition, the Latin American bourgeoisie has sought to arm and strengthen its state apparatus to prepare for a bloody crackdown against workers, students, and peasants. Just a week before Election Day, the crisis gripping the American ruling class and its state, marked by intractable and bitter internal conflicts, has erupted into open political warfare. Last Fridays letter from Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey to Congress announcing new investigative steps in the probe of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, itself a manifestation of the crisis, has brought the underlying tensions to the boiling point. It has exposed raging conflicts within the FBI and, more broadly, the national security apparatus as a whole. Comeys cryptic letter acknowledged that the FBI has not actually reviewed a new batch of emails that appear to be pertinent to its previous investigation into Clintons use of a private email server for official business while she was secretary of state. The agency, he wrote, cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant. This astonishing admission makes all the more extraordinary Comeys decision to make the discovery of the new emails a public issue only eleven days before the election. In a rapid-fire series of developments this weekend, Justice Department officials revealed that they had opposed Comeys decision to send the letter, arguing that it violated a longstanding principle that no Justice Department or FBI action that might impact on a candidate should be announced within 60 days of an election. The Clinton campaign and congressional Democrats lashed out at Comey for the timing of the letter. At a campaign rally in Daytona Beach, Florida, Clinton said Comeys action is not just strange, its unprecedented. She also tweeted that FBI Director Comey bowed to partisan pressure, suggesting that the letter was an effort to appease congressional Republican leaders opposed to Comeys determination last July that there was no basis for criminal charges against Clinton over her use of a private email server. Democratic Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid sent a letter to Comey suggesting that he had violated the law forbidding government employees to use their official positions to influence the result of an election. I am writing to inform you that my office has determined that these actions may violate the Hatch Act, he wrote. Through your partisan actions, you may have broken the law. He added that Comey had demonstrated a disturbing double standard for the treatment of sensitive information, with what appears to be clear intent to aid one political party over another, because he had made public the renewed FBI interest in Clintons emails, but was silent on what Reid called explosive information supposedly connecting Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to Russian government officials. Here Reid was resorting to the Russia-baiting that has been the Clinton campaigns main response to the publication by WikiLeaks of tens of thousands of emails and other documents sent or received by campaign chairman John Podesta, including devastating information on Bill Clintons use of the Clinton Foundation to obtain lucrative speaking engagements with corporations and business associations. Campaign spokesmen have refused to discuss the contents of the emails, claiming that they were hacked by Russian government agents and then handed over to WikiLeaks to damage Clinton and help Trump. NBC News reported Sunday that the FBI has now obtained a search warrant to go through all 650,000 emails found on the laptop of former congressman Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of Clintons closest aide, Huma Abedin. Weiner is under FBI investigation for allegedly sending sexually explicit text messages to an underage girl. The Wall Street Journal gave details, in a story posted on its web site Sunday afternoon, of the explosive internal crisis within the FBI that led to Comeys letter to Congress. By this account, there has been a fierce battle within the FBI and between the FBI and the Justice Department not only over the Clinton email investigation, but over separate investigations involving four FBI field offices (New York, Washington DC, Los Angeles and Little Rock, Arkansas) into the operations of the Clinton Foundation. More than eight months ago, FBI agents presented plans for a more aggressive investigation of the foundation to career prosecutors in the Justice Department, only to have the proposal blocked on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence. The FBI offices nonetheless continued their investigations, which were intensified after the Clinton email investigation was wound up in July. The Journal report suggests that either a substantial faction within the FBI was convinced that top FBI officials were covering up criminal activities on the part of Hillary and Bill Clinton, or the FBI dissidents were politically motivated to use agency resources to undermine Hillary Clintons presidential campaign, or both. When top officials in the FBI and Justice Department opposed these efforts, open rebellion followed, expressed in leaks to the Wall Street Journal centrally targeting FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, whose wife was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for state senate in Virginia last year. According to some press reports, Comey sent his letter to Congress last week because he was convinced the information would become public anyway through further leaks by FBI subordinates. The open warfare engulfing Washington on the eve of a presidential election reveals that the entire political system and the state apparatus itself are riven by tensions and conflicts so deep and bitter that they cannot be contained within the traditional framework of bourgeois elections. Fueling these tensions is the convergence of crises on the economic, geopolitical, internal political and social fronts. The US and world economy remain mired in stagnation more than eight years after the 2008 Wall Street crash, and there are growing fears that central bank policies designed to buttress the banks and drive up stock prices are leading to a new financial disaster. The economic crisis is fueling social anger and alienation from the entire political system, as reflected in different ways in the mass support for the anti-Wall Street campaign of the self-styled socialist Bernie Sanders and the America first pseudo-populist campaign of Donald Trump. Twenty-five years of unending war and fifteen years of the war on terror have failed to secure US hegemony in the Middle East and only heightened fears within the ruling elite that US imperialism is losing ground to rivals such as Russia and China. The disarray of US policy in Syria, in particular, has led to bitter conflicts and recriminations over US policy, and demands for a major escalation of military violence, not only in Syria, but throughout the Middle East. These are combined with calls for a more aggressive confrontation with Russia and China. The great danger is that these conflicts are being fought out behind the backs of the working class by different factions of the same reactionary ruling class. Unless the working class intervenes as an independent political and revolutionary force, fighting for its own interests in opposition to all parties and factions of the capitalist class, the crisis will inevitably result in ever more right-wing policies at home and ever wider wars abroad, leading inexorably to a new world war. The capitalist two-party system offers only two reactionary alternatives: the fascistic billionaire Trump, who demands a vast increase in military spending and authoritarian methods of rule, and the multimillionaire Clinton, the favorite of Wall Street and the military-intelligence apparatus, who would continue and escalate the right-wing policies of the Obama administration. All factions of the ruling elite agree on concealing the implications of the world capitalist crisis from working people. Hence the degraded character of the bourgeois election campaign, with any serious discussion of the social crisis and the war danger drowned out by media sensationalism over a succession of sex scandals and anti-Russian propaganda. The Socialist Equality Party entered the 2016 elections to prepare the working class for the political convulsions that have already begun, even before the ballots are counted on Election Day. Our candidates, Jerry White for president and Niles Niemuth for vice president, have consistently warned that the capitalist campaigns are aimed at concealing the crisis and disarming working people. The SEP election campaign is not fundamentally about votes, but about building a political leadership in the working class for the great struggles to come. We urge all readers of the World Socialist Web Site to actively support the SEP election campaign. There is no time to lose. It is necessary to take a stand against social inequality, political repression and war. The SEP and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality are holding a conference at Wayne State University in Detroit this Saturday, November 5, titled Socialism vs. Capitalism and War. The purpose of this conference is to lay the political basis for the development of a movement against imperialist war nationally and internationally, based on the working class and the fight for socialism. Make plans to attend and register for the conference today. The Polish government, headed by the Law and Justice (PiS) party, is preparing to mount a legal action against the president of the European Council, Donald Tusk. Tusk is a member of the opposition Civic Platform (PO), and was Polish prime minister from 2007 to 2014. With its campaign against Tusk, the PiS is trying to eliminate an important ally of the German government in the EU, weaken the opposition in Poland and foment anti-Russian sentiment. The head of the PiS, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, has repeatedly declared that the government will not support a second Tusk presidency of the Council. He also threatened to prosecute Tusk. According to the Polish media Tusk is threatened with being charged with diplomatic treason, i.e. activities against the interests of Poland in cooperation with a foreign state. The charge involves a possible sentence of 10 years imprisonment. The Polish newspaper wSieci wrote that it is very likely that such a prosecution will go ahead. The allegations concern Tusks relations with the Kremlin and, in particular, his political reaction to the aircraft crash in Smolensk in 2010, which resulted in the death of a large part of the Polish government, as well as representatives of the military and the Sejm (Polish parliament). Among the victims of the Smolensk crash was the Polish president at that time, Lech Kaczynski, the twin brother of the current PiS head. The PiS maintains that the crash was not an accident, but rather an attack by Russia on the Polish government. It accuses the government under Tusk of concealing the real causes of the crash in conspiracy with the Kremlin. Since taking power last autumn, the PiS government has stepped up its propaganda campaign significantly. In September, a government commission began to investigate the disaster. The chairman of the commission is Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz, one of the most right-wing members of the Polish cabinet and a vehement supporter of the massive NATO military offensive against Russia. In recent years, Macierewicz has repeatedly put forward various conspiracy theories to explain the incident in Smolensk. A movie showing widely in Poland at the moment supports the version of the crash propagated by the PiS. The film has been enthusiastically promoted by leading PiS politicians. In fact, Tusk is no friend of the Kremlin. He and his party, PO, are among the fiercest warmongers in the EU. Following an EU summit on relations with Russia in October, Tusk said: It is clear that Russias strategy is to weaken the EU. He described the economic sanctions levied against Russia due to the Ukraine crisis as a defensive measure. The Tusk government helped organize the coup in Ukraine in 2014, trained right-wing, paramilitary Ukrainian militias and launched the massive military campaign against Russia, which the PiS government has continued. When the PiS describes this attitude as too soft, it makes clear the extent to which the current government is pressing for war with Russia. The threats against Tusk are aimed not least at intimidating genuine opponents of such a war. The PiS is also attacking Tusk because he represents a wing of the Polish bourgeoisie that advocates close cooperation between Poland and Germany, within the framework of the EU. According to media reports, Tusk is in daily telephone contact with his successor as head of the PO, Ewa Kopacz. Despite his function in the EU, he remains the de facto leader of the party. As president of the European Council, which consists of the heads of state and government of all member countries and is the real power center of the EU, Tusk works closely with Berlin. He has played an important role in keeping growing opposition on the part of the so-called Visegrad group (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia) under the control of Germany. Apart from the PiS government, the governments of the Visegrad countries largely support Tusks political course. The American web site Politico quoted an adviser to the German Social Democratic Party who said: You can trust him, he is reliable, he can keep secrets to himself. Everyone knows that [German chancellor Angela] Merkel desperately needs Tusk to keep the Eastern European countries quiet and under control. She will never let him fall. She would rather sacrifice the presidency of the EU parliament, currently held by the German Martin Schulz, (SPD), in order to keep Tusk. Tusk works closely with Merkel and her government on many issues and advocates, along with Berlin and Paris, a hard Brexit for Britain. Representatives of PiS had attacked Tusk after the Brexit referendum, which came as a major shock for the Polish bourgeoisie. Kaczynski accused Tusk of being directly responsible for the no vote because he had imposed harsh conditions on Great Britain in negotiations. Kaczynski said Tusk should disappear from the political stage. The PiS government is also opposed to the plans for a European military union, an initiative mainly driven by Berlin and Paris, and is trying to establish close ties with the British government led by Theresa May. She hopes to use the Brexit to transform the EU from a political into a purely economic alliance. So far, however, negotiations between Poland and the UK have proceeded slowly. The attacks on Tusk are not least of all aimed at eliminating an important ally of Berlin in the EU, thereby weakening the position of Germany, and hindering Berlins plans for a military union. 25 Years Ago | 50 Years Ago | 75 Years Ago | 100 Years Ago 25 years ago: Largest general strike in South African history Millions of black South African workers staged a powerful two-day general strike on November 4-5, 1991 to protest the apartheid governments attacks on their living standards and to carry forward the struggle against the government of President F.W. de Klerk. Between 3 million and 4 million workers, including 70 to 80 percent of the industrial workforce, participated on each day of the two-day strike. It was the biggest strike in South African history. The strike was called in response to the government imposition of a 10 percent value-added tax (VAT) on September 30. The new tax covered almost all transactions and items, including most food staples and medical services, and was a vicious attack on the already meager living standards of the black working class. Police arrested 108 people during 16 protest marches and demonstrations which were carried out in defiance of the authorities. At a battle between backers and opponents of the strike at a mine outside the town of Welkom, 160 miles south of Johannesburg, 15 miners died and 43 were injured on the eve of the walkout. On the second day of the strike, police shot dead a black demonstrator and wounded five others in Daveyton black township, east of Johannesburg. Witnesses accused the police of opening fire indiscriminately on a group of blacks walking to a rally at Daveyton stadium. Support for the strike was overwhelming, and could not be denied even by government spokesmen. In the main industrial region around Johannesburg, between 80 and 100 percent of the workforce heeded the strike call. It was like a sleepy Sunday in Johannesburg, the business and industrial heart of South Africa, and the massive black township of Soweto, adjacent to it. Johannesburgs commuter rail authority announced that it had only 5 percent of normal traffic on its trains on Monday, and only 2 percent on Tuesday. According to the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), 60 percent of the gold and 90 percent of the coal and diamond mines were hit by the strike, and farm workers joined a national general strike for the first time. The industrial cities of Port Elizabeth and East London were like ghost towns, as the vehicle manufacturing industry concentrated in that area was at a standstill. The strike was somewhat less successful in Cape Town and Durban, the two other big industrial centers, although here also half or more of the black workers observed the walkout. [top] 50 year ago: Florence flooding kills 149, destroys historic art works On November 4, 1966, a flash flood swept through Italys historic city of Florence and its surrounding areas, killing 149 people and destroying or damaging invaluable Renaissance art and literature. The water level from the Arno River reached its highest recorded level since the year 1333. Some 5,000 families were made homeless and 6,000 businesses were destroyed. Abnormally heavy precipitation in the autumn had saturated the ground feeding the Arnos tributaries in the mountains surrounding Florence. Rains on November 2 then melted early snowfall, increasing water volume and overflowing dams. By the afternoon of November 3 outlying villages began to report devastating floods, and civil engineers warned that Florence itself would imminently flood. Nonetheless, most of the citys population was unaware of the danger, and no precautions had been taken to protect its historic patrimony. It is estimated that between 3 million and 4 million manuscripts and books plus 14,000 works of art, many dating to the Middle Ages and Renaissance, were damaged or destroyed in the flood, which deposited 600,000 tons of sludge throughout the city. Among the museums and libraries affected were the world famous Uffizi Gallery, the National Library, and the State Archives, as well as historical and artistic collections at numerous churches, including Florence Cathedral and the Basilica of Santa Croce. The unpreparedness and incompetence of government authorities was quickly juxtaposed to the spirit of solidarity and dedication of the youth and working class brought forth by the flood. On their own initiative and at their own expense, from all over Italy and Europe, tens of thousands of young people traveled to Florence to help with recovery. Many of these volunteers, nicknamed mud angels, spent weeks and months sifting through sludge to preserve the citys unsurpassed artistic heritage. [top] 75 years ago: Cetniks and Partisans clash in Yugoslavia On November 1, 1941 in the midst of a massive offensive by German air and land forces against territories in Serbia held by Yugoslav Partisan units led by Titos Communist Party, the Serbian Cetnik forces under the nationalist Draza Mihailovic launched surprise attacks against Uzice and other Partisan positions. Throughout October, and under Stalins orders, Tito had held negotiations with the Cetniks in an effort to establish a wartime popular front. The Partisans offered to place their forces alongside the Cetniks and under Mihailovics command. Tito also gave hundreds of weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition to the Cetniks which were now being used in the attack on the Partisans. While putting up fierce and bloody resistance to the German advance, the Partisans mobilized their remaining units and armed Uzice factory workers to halt and then drive back Mihailovics Cetniks, ultimately surrounding them. But Tito ordered a halt to the Partisan attack and futile negotiations were once again begun for a Cetnik-Partisan alliance. Many of the Cetnik leaders, while professing to be part of the Allied camp, were secretly receiving arms and money from the Nazis to attack the Partisans. While negotiating with Tito, Mihailovic turned over 365 Partisan prisoners to the Nazis to be executed. Stalin received daily reports from Tito which spelled out the disastrous failure of the attempt to establish a popular front with the Serbian nationalists. Nevertheless, Stalin placed his alliance with British and American imperialism above the courageous resistance of the Yugoslav workers and peasants, which had forced Hitler to withdraw German divisions fighting on the eastern front against the Soviet Red Army in order to quell the uprising in Yugoslavia. On November 17, Stalin met with Yugoslav royalists and British officials and agreed to publicly proclaim Mihailovic as the leader of the resistance to the Germans. For the next year and a half, Stalin remained silent while Mihailovics Cetniks received both Allied and German aid to fight the Partisans. [top] 100 years ago: IWW members killed in Everett Massacre On November 5, 1916, armed sheriffs deputies killed five members of the revolutionary-syndicalist and anti-war Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) in Everett, Washington. Known as the Everett Massacre, the murders followed months of increasingly brutal suppression of IWW members by local police and sheriffs deputies. Everett, a port city on Puget Sound, was completely dominated by the lumber industry. After a bitter strike in 1915, a 20 percent wage cut had been imposed on shingle workers. In May 1916 workers struck again demanding higher pay after the price of shingles soared. Most mills in the state granted a wage increase, but not those in Everett. The IWW intervened in the strike in July, launching a free speech fight on the streets of Everett as part of an organizing drive. The response of the lumber companies and their state agencies became more and more violent as the strike continued. On August 19, strikebreakers had beaten up workers on the picket line while the police turned a blind eye. By September members of the IWW who tried to enter the city were being attacked and run out of town by vigilantes. At the end of October, 41 IWW members arrived from Seattle by ship. They were met by the sheriff and 300 armed deputies. The IWW members were arrested and beaten, before being forced to run through crowds of deputies wielding clubs and whips as they were driven out of the town. The attack provoked outrage in the labor movement and the IWW announced its intention to hold a public meeting in Everett on Sunday, November 5. More than 300 IWW members traveled from Seattle on two passenger vessels for the meeting. More than 200 armed deputies under the sheriffs control waited on the docks for the ships to arrive. As the workers attempted to disembark, the deputies opened fire. Many of the IWW members crowded on the deck fell in the first volley of shots. Others jumped into the water. At the end of the mayhem five IWW members had been shot, a further six were missing and presumed dead and 27 were injured. Two deputies were also reportedly killed. Seventy-four IWW members, including Thomas Tracy, one of the organizations leaders, were arrested following the massacre and charged with the murder of the two deputies. Tracy was subsequently acquitted of the murder charge and the charges against the remaining IWW members were dropped. [top] The murderous and criminal character of the US-Saudi war against Yemen, the poorest country of the Middle East, was laid bare once again Sunday with the report of an air strike that claimed the lives of scores of civilians in the Red Sea port city of Al Hudaydah. The bombs struck a prison facility inside a government compound controlled by the Houthi rebel movement, which controls the north and west of the country. According to reports from Yemen, more than 60 people were killed in the air strike, which demolished two detention centers, and at least 40 more were wounded. The Saudi warplanes used their familiar tactic of dropping bombs on the facility and then waiting for people to rush to the scene to search for survivors before bombing again to achieve the maximum death toll. Prisoners and guards alike were buried in the rubble. Photographs released from the scene showed lines of bodies covered in sheets. The prison bombing, which took place at about midnight Saturday, followed close on the heels of another air strike in the western city of Taiz in the western Yemeni highlands, the countrys third largest population center and a major cultural center. Taiz has been the scene of bitter fighting between the Houthi rebels and Saudi-backed ground forces for the past year and a half. Saturdays raid there targeted the al-Salw residential district near the front lines, demolishing several homes. Among those struck was the house of Abdullah Abdo, in which the US-supplied bombs dropped by Saudi jets took the lives of 11 members of the same family. Many of the victims were children. Reportedly seven of the dead were women. The air strikes Saturday were the bloodiest since October 8, when Saudi warplanes attacked a funeral home in the capital of Sanaa, killing and wounding at least 700 people. As many as 155 people died in that attack, which left many of the wounded without limbs and otherwise maimed. Like the latest strike on the prisons, it was a double tap bombing raid, timed to ensure that those rushing to the aid of the wounded would also be killed. There is every reason to believe that this earlier attack was not a matter of collateral damage or mistaken targeting, but rather a deliberate attempt to decapitate the Houthi regime in Sanaa. The funeral that was hit was for the father of the governments interior minister and was attended by a number of senior officials, who lost their lives. In the aftermath of that horrific bombing, US officials issued mealy-mouthed statements to the effect that Washingtons support for the Saudi war was not a blank check and that it would be realigned in accordance with American values. Since then, US aid has continued to flow. US planes are continuing to refuel Saudi fighters in midair so that they can carry out these murderous attacks. And the US Navy has itself joined the onslaught, launching Tomahawk cruise missiles at alleged Houthi radar stations, supposedly in retaliation for missiles fired at a US warship in the Red Sea. US military officials have subsequently acknowledged doubts about the supposed missile attacks, raising the possibility that a US Navy radar malfunction had generated ghost signals. Just one day before the latest atrocities carried out against the Yemeni people, both the United States and Saudi Arabia were voted onto the United Nations Human Rights Council. The elevation to this panel of the two countries most responsible for killing an estimated 10,200 Yemenis in the past year and a half, the great majority of them civilians, and pushing at least half the population to the brink of starvation serves to unmask the hypocrisy of the entire human rights framework for justifying imperialist wars and interventions all over the globe. This has particularly been evident in Syria, where the fate of eastern Aleppo, occupied by Al Qaeda-linked Islamist militias, has been turned into the object of a crusade to demonize Russia for its support for the Syrian governments attempt to retake the area and to prepare public opinion for a far wider war. The propaganda denunciations of Russia over Aleppo have continued, despite a suspension of Russian and Syrian air strikes against the positions of the US-armed Islamist rebels, which is now entering its third week. The Al Qaeda-affiliated militias have used the suspension of air strikes to mount their own offensive, which has been directed in large measure against the civilian population of government-controlled western Aleppo, where the vast majority of the citys population lives. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group hostile to the Syrian government, reported Sunday that rebel shelling of western Aleppo had killed at least 41 civilians over a three-day period, at least 16 of them children. The Islamist militias have also used suicide car bombs in an attempt to breach government positions, also claiming civilian victims. Among the rebel attacks Sunday was a barrage of shells containing toxic gases that struck the al-Hamadaniyeh area and the al-Assad residential suburb of Aleppo. According to reports, one person died from gas poisoning, while at least 35 people were sent to the hospital from the effects of chlorine gas. In 2013, the Obama administration came to the brink of launching a direct military attack on Syria over allegations that the government of President Bashar al-Assad was responsible for a gas attack on the Damascus suburb of Ghouta, which supposedly violated a red line set by Obama over the use of poison gas. The Syrian government denied its responsibility for the attack, which coincided with the arrival of United Nations weapons inspectors in Damascus to investigate previous gas attacks and provided a convenient pretext for US military intervention against the Assad regime. In the end, Washington accepted a face-saving deal brokered by Russian President Vladimir Putin providing for the UN-supervised destruction of all of Syrias chemical weapons stockpiles. Subsequent reports, including by the US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, pointed to the Ghouta attack having been organized by the Turkish government working in league with the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al Nusra Front in order to blame it on Assad and provide a means for the Obama administration to override popular opposition to another US war in the Middle East and launch military action in Syria. There is, needless to say, no sign within the US and other western media of the kind of moral outrage and humanitarian concern evinced over the Russian bombing of Aleppo or the fabricated charges of Syrian government gas attacks over the recent crimes carried out against the people of western Aleppo. Rather, the New York Times Saturday wrote approvingly that A coalition of Syrian insurgent groups said it had begun a major offensive on Friday to break the months-long siege of eastern parts of Aleppo. The Times went on to advance an alibi for the fact that the forces backed by the US against the Assad government are led by Al Qaeda. 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, the report stated, providing an argument for the CIA and the Pentagon pouring more heavy weaponry and anti-aircraft missiles into the hands of Al Qaeda. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (The News Service of Florida) - Close to 30 percent of the state's more than 12.8 million eligible voters have already cast ballots for the Nov. 8 general election, with registered Republicans holding a slight edge over Democrats. Nearly 1.8 million Floridian took advantage of early-voting sites across the state in the first of the two weeks the voting option was available, according to numbers posted early Monday by the state Division of Elections. Almost 2 million other Floridians have submitted vote-by-mail ballots. Voters from both major parties have returned more than 1.5 million ballots each, with Republicans ahead by almost 65,000 among vote-by-mail ballots as of early Monday. Democrats were up in early voting numbers by just over 55,000. Independents have returned more than 325,000 vote-by-mail ballots and cast over 300,000 early votes. Floridians registered with third parties have accounted for nearly 50,000 vote-by-mail ballots and more than 40,000 early votes. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Patrick Murphy made a surprise appearance in Tallahassee on Sunday, alongside mayor Andrew Gillum and other political dignitaries. Murphy stopped by the "Souls to the Polls" event at the B.L. Perry library that encourages members of the Tallahassee community to vote early. This was representative Murphy's first time in Tallahassee since august. Murphy says he attended today's voter participation event because he believes that it's important for citizens in Florida to take advantage of early voting to make sure their voices are heard. The 'Souls to the Polls' event was hosted by Bethel AME Church. Members believe that this is a fun way to bring the community together while exercising their right to vote. The church will hold another voting event on November 6th. TIETON, Wash. In less than two weeks, Trae Oyler was supposed to go to Thailand. You are the owner of this article. You have permission to edit this collection. Edit Close Over the past year, quadcopters that have so far only seen civilian use have become a popular tool in the IDF. They're being used in almost every possible corps and for a variety of tasks. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Among these tasks are locating suspects, pursuing terrorists or thwarting infiltration attemps. In addition, the little aircraft is being used in operational duty on all fronts, in training exercises and in search and rescue missions. "The main advantage of quadcopters is their availability. Nowadays, even in ongoing incidents like a shooting attack, we can have a quadcopter in the air within minutes to help locate a terrorist cell that managed to get away, or a terrorist who threw a Molotov cocktail," said Lt. Col. Ayalon Peretz, the deputy commander of the Nitzan Battalion from the Combat Intelligence Collection Corps. A prototype for the first IDF-made quadcopter, Tzur. Quadcopters are also being used by Special Forces operating in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. "The quadcopters go between the alleys, clear the area for the soldiers, scan the rooftops for armed men ambushing our forces," Peretz explained. "A moment before forces close in on a suspect's house, the quadcopter scans the area." Captain Itay Haronian, a commander of one of the Nitzan Battalion's companies, explained that "before an arrest raid, we scan the suspects' houses with a quadcopter, using the footage to create a three-dimensional image of the area for the troops, marking all obstacles like fences, holes, walls, and possible escape routes." Hundreds of quadcopters are being used by the IDF on a daily basis. But these quadcopters were not developed by the IDF or for it. At the moment, the military is using civilian-made quadcopters, mostly the Phantom model, that anyone can buy for somewhere around NIS 3,000-5,000. The army is, however, working on developing the first IDF-made quadcopter, Tzur , which will be able to carry ammunition and logistic equipment, reducing the risk to the soldier that would otherwise have to carry that gear in enemy territory. Tzur will also include state-of-the-art observation measures for both day and night, will be able to operate for hours at a range of up to 10 km, and will have a much quieter engine than that of its civilian counterpart. For comparison, while Tzur will weigh somewhere between 10-15 kg, the civilian quadcopter currently being used by the IDF only weighs 2.5 kg. However, the focus ability of its day time camera is limited, its night vision camera has been improvised and it is limited to only 20 minutes of flight time at a range of only 2.5 km. So what use does the IDF make of the quadcopters? Chasing infiltrators Operations to foil Palestinian infiltrations into Israel are on the rise in light of the high number of terrorists in recent attacks who entered the country illegally. Hundreds of Palestinians illegally cross into Israel every week through areas of the border fence in the southern Mount Hebron area that have yet to be completed. In an effort to put an end to this phenomenon, the Yehuda Territorial Brigade has recruited the help of quadcopters. The IDF is also seeking to arrest drivers who transport Palestinians into Israel illegally and the "facilitators" who make money smuggling them in, thus enabling terrorists who use that route as well. In the video, the quadcopter captured an operation near the village of Burj, not far from kibbutz Shomria on the other side of the border fence. '' X The troops used the live feed from the quadcopter to identify the infiltrators and then chase them to an area where the fence had already been erected, to corner and arrest them. Gaining control of violet riots The IDF's Judea and Samaria Division has recently begun using quadcopters to monitor and disperse rioting in the West Bank. The video shows rioting at the Jalazone refugee camp near Ramallah, which Israeli forces were worried would spill over to the nearby settlement of Beit El. '' X Commanders used the live feed from the quadcopter to more effectively deploy their troops as well as more effectively employ crowd dispersal measures, thus gaining control over the rioters. Identifying and tracking rioters Using a quadcopter to contain and disperse rioting has several advantages: It helps identify and later arrest the main instigators, who often cover their faces, by tracking the fleeing rioters to their homes. The footage filmed by the quadcopter would later be used to prosecute them. '' X In addition, by following the rioters from above, security forces can find where they hide their stores of tires, to be later set aflame during the riot. The video documents a violent riot that occurs almost every week, mostly on Fridays, in Kafr Qaddum in the Samaria region of the West Bank. The riot is fueled by Palestinian claims that a main road that belongs to the village was appropriated by the nearby settlement Kedumim. Drawing conclusions It is often difficult to identify and understand the mistakes made or the points to improve upon following IDF drills and training exercises, particularly in combat basic training, because there is no filmed record of the drill. To remedy this, the Engineering Corps has decided to use quadcopters to document the four-day final exercise of combat basic training, which was recently held at a military zone in the Jordan Valley. '' X The quadcopter documented different types of raids from several different angles, both outside and into structures, with live fire and without, as well as entry into and external treatment of terror tunnels, explosive disposal, and treatment of unconventional materials. Caracal trainees 'conquer' enemy hill Another force making use of quadcopters to document the final exercise of basic training is the Caracal Battalionthe first infantry battalion in the IDF to introduce female combat soldiers into its ranks. The Caracal troops begin their level 07 training (similar to that of Golani and Paratroopers soldiers) at the Givati Brigade's training base near the Sinai border fence. '' X Their final training exercise includes attack formations in open area, firing grenades from an RPG launcher, and observations over the Nitzana area near the border with Egypt, where the battalion is also stationed. During the exercise, the company conquered a hill where "enemy combatants" were hiding. During their operational duty, these combatants will likely be ISIS militants in the Sinai Peninsula. Clearing the path for the tanks Quadcopters have recently been introduced to the veteran Armored Corps, whose troops and commanders are not used to have flying gadgets hovering over their tanks. But while the quadcopters are currently only used for training, the 7th Armored Brigade, which recently conducted a l arge-scale drill in the Golan Heights , used them for more than just playing back the action. The 7th Brigade's infantry combat support company used quadcopters during the drill to clear area for the advancing troops and locate enemy combatants that might be hiding ahead, taking advantage of the quadcopter's availability, speed and simplicity compared to tactical drones or other measures of information gathering. '' X According to the 77th Battalion's operations officer, Maj. Omer Binyamin, "the quadcopter has an advantage in allowing us to know whether enemy combatants are hiding up ahead. With the quadcopter, we can also see the results of shelling done by the infantry company as well as identify explosives." Shooting ranges on the Lebanese border In recent years, the Mount Dov area has become the most sensitive sector on the Lebanon border. But even during times of high tensions, the soldiers of the Golani Brigade's 13th Battalion find the time to maintain operational fitness in between ambushes and patrols. '' X This video, filmed by the Galilee Division, provides a special glimpse into the troops' daily routine: simulating different scenarios at the shooting range, including execises which examine the marksmanship of the soldiers during the long, exhausting months of operational duty. In the wilderness of the Jordan Valley The northern Jordan Valley, much like the Arabah region, is considered one of the tougher areas to control due to the wide dispersal of communities surrounded by empty wilderness. The IDF's second mixed battalion, the Lions of Jordanwhich is in charge of the areaheld its first major training exercise last month. '' X The troopsmen and women serving side by sidedrilled different scenarios with the help of quadcopters flying overhead, including enemy infiltration into a settlement and capturing of terrorists. The quadcopters followed the battalion's three operational companies during open-area training as well. Quickly finding trapped persons The quadcopters can also be used to scan smaller, much denser areas. The collapse of a parking garage in northern Tel Aviv in September allowed the Home Front Command to use new search and rescue measures that have so far been under development. Among them is a device that searches for signals from cellular devices to find trapped persons and giant sand pumps to hasten the clearing of the wreckage from the site. But it was the quadcopter, first used in this disaster, which had the most impressive results. It was sent into the air shortly after search and rescue forces arrived at the collapse site, allowing them to quickly map the complex scene. This in turn enabled a more effective extraction of trapped persons on the day of the collapse. '' X "Within minutes, we received an accurate image of the site and used it to analyze the dangerous spots and figure out where we should start and where to send our teams," said Maj. Menachem Friedman, the head of the Weapons Department at the Home Front Command. "In the future, we'll also receive a quadcopter with a thermal camera that would aid us in locating hot spotstrapped persons near the surface, who are difficult to spot because of the wreckage. There are also several small quadcopters that would be able to operate inside spaces, but we're still testing those." The Home Front Command first started using quadcopters during Operation Protective Edge to find rockets that had landed in large open areas. This drastically shortened the time the troops on the ground spent on searching for crash sites. "In the future, we'll also be able to send a quadcopter to locate dangerous materials by 'smelling' them and reporting back on the affected areas," Maj. Friedman said. "We intend to use larger quadcopters to transport logistic tools to disaster areas in a faster, safer and more effective manner and with that save human lives. At present, every conscript battalion in the command uses a quadcopter." The IDF's City of Training Bases Some 10,000 soldiers serve at Camp Ariel Sharon in the Negev region, more commonly known as the IDF's City of Training Bases due to its massive size2,500 dunam that house 135 buildings and 450 classrooms and lecture halls. The quadcopter flown over the project in August documented the different training bases, including The School for Telecommunications, The School for Medicine, The Adjutant Corps School, The School for Logistics, The Military Police School, The Education Corps School, and The Ordnance Corps School. '' X The City of Training Bases offers much improvement over the old bases, which were scattered across the country. Cadets undergoing the different training courses in the complex can now make use of 3D presentations and other interactive technologies in their studies, while the living quarters and catering in the complex are considered the most modern and advanced in the IDF. The minor involved in the murder of Alexander Levlovich , 64, whose death came to signify the beginning of last years wave of terror across Israel, received a prison sentence of nine years Monday morning as part of a plea bargain in which he confessed to all charges leveled against him and agreed to testify against four other accomplices. The Levlovich family will also be compensated with NIS 10,000 as part of the plea bargain. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The sentence comes just over a year after Levlovich was fatally wounded on the eve of Rosh Hashana in 2015the Jewish new year when he lost control of his car after it was pelted with stones by Palestinians. He was returning home after a festive meal. Three suspects indicted for manslaughter X The indictment against the terrorists was submitted a year ago, while the plea bargain on behalf of the minor was submitted Monday morning. As part of the latter, the charges were reduced from manslaughter to accessory to manslaughter. Alexander Levlovich (Photo: Amit Shabi) In light of their success in obtaining a plea bargain for the minor, the lawyers representing the remaining defendants indicted for manslaughter are also seeking a plea bargain to reduce their sentences. Three terrorists indicted for manslaughter (Photo: Shin Bet) To that end, they have requested from the courts that the main defendant be handed a sentence of 18 years in prisona term to which the Levlovich family objects. According to the indictment, on the eve of Rosh Hashana in 2015, the accused inidividuals met with the intention of throwing rocks at cars driven by Jews on main roads in the Armon Hanatziv neighborhood in Jerusalem as part of acts defined as retaliation and solidarity in the wake of riots on the Temple Mount. The four offenders hurled rocks at a number of vehicles before hitting that belonging to Levlovich, causing him to swerve off the road and crash into a tree. He was later pronounced dead. Photo: Jerusalem Fire and Rescue Services The four terrorists fled the scene and later attempted to establish a consistent version of what had transpired in the event that they were arrested. In Septemeber, Levlovichs family held a small memorial ceremony in the neighborhood at the spot where he was killed. Tanzania, a once unlikely ally, made a significant impact in softening the langauge in a recent United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) resolution disregarding Jewish ties with Jerusalem, which followed another that was passed the previous week. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Due to Tanzanian interventions during the discussions of the second resolution, references to Jewish holy sites in Jerusalem were slightly more respectful, and Israel was not referenced solely as an occupying force. Moreover, when Israel needed allies to help it make the vote on the second resolution a secret one, Tanzaniaan African nation of 51 million residents whose relations with the government in Jerusalem were practically non-existent one year agostepped up to help. Tanzanian President John Magufuli strengthened relations with Israel (Photo: AFP) Up until a few years ago, Tanzania was considered fairly hostile towards Israel. As a member of the UN's Non-Aligned group of states, it usually voted against Israel's side in resolutions, breaking such practice only on crucial matters such as nuclear proliferation. The turn for the better occurred in November 2015, when new President John Magufuli came into office. Magufuli. a devout catholic, stated that Tanzania's ties to Israel were important to him from the outset, and met with Israeli Ambassador to Nairobi, Kenya, Yahel Vilanunder whose purview diplomatic relations with Tanzania also fallin early 2016. During a government meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned Tanzania in a government meeting, thanking it, and Croatia, for their assistance in the UNESCO votes. "I would like to thank the president of Tanzania, who stepped forward alongside the Croatian representative," Netanyahu said, "They, in fact, foiled the fables of the second UNESCO resolution This is another indication of the great change taking place with Israel's relations to the world, in direct proportion to Israeli power." Is there anyonein the political system, in the media, in the public, somewherewho understands what the prime minister wants? Is there anyone who can explain the loop Benjamin Netanyahu has gotten himself into in regards to the Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC)? Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Who exactly is Netanyahu fighting here, apart from the demons running around in his head? And how has a reform, which he himself supported, become the main issue on the governments agenda, when even Likud ministers find it difficult to understand the motivation behind this battle, seeing it as complete insanity? A small test for Netanyahu, a big test for Kahlon (Photo: Miriam Alster/Flash 90) There is no escape from determining that like children who invent an imaginary friend, Netanyahu constantly needs an imaginary enemy. A fundamental issue he will fight over to the last drop of our blood. First it was the law against free newspapers, which prompted him to push for new elections, then came the Iranian issue and the gas deal, and when that was taken off the agendathe media became the prime ministers No. 1 threat again. When one hears the accusations issued by Netanyahus associates against the IPBC, one cannot help but suspect that we are witnessing one of the most serious paranoia attacks the prime minister has ever suffered from. This is an issue which should concern all of us. When the prime minister loses proportions, makes a mountain out of a molehill and turns a marginal issue in terms of running a state into the main issue the state has been dealing with for the past two weeksthere is definitely cause for concern. So what have we had here? It began with a move led by Gilad Erdan as communications minister in Netanyahus previous term, which was backed by the prime minister. It continued in the current term, with Netanyahu as communications minister. If he was so opposed to the IPBCs establishment, he could have stopped it a year and a half ago. But in the same cabinet meeting in which Culture Minister Miri Regev said, What good is a public broadcasting corporation if we dont control it? Netanyahu said that "We" have already taken care of the press, that the public broadcasting corporation is not that interesting, and that the important thing is to create competition against the existing commercial channels. Both in the Knesset and in the long conversations he had with media organizations, the prime minister spoke about creating competition against the television channels. So what has happened to turn the IPBC into a do or die issue that has caused his people to threaten to stop playing by the rules and call for yet another election? It likely indicates Netanyahus mood rather than any fundamental issue he has discovered. On the one hand, the desire to control the media, and on the other hand, the paranoia that he is being targeted, that he is being persecuted, that the newly established public broadcasting corporation is part of a plot to bring him down. His willingness to launch such a radical battle over an issue that is actually so marginal to him and will definitely not determine his future shows that he is haunted. Who are his enemies? IPBC Chairman Gil Omer? IPBC CEO Eldad Koblenz? With all due respect to the IPBC and the importance of its establishment, the prime minister should not be dealing with this issue, neither directly nor as a second or third hand. But Netanyahu has already quarreled with Interior Minister Aryeh Deri, got in trouble with Minister of Public Security, Strategic Affairs and Minister of Information Erdan and is facing a hand-to-hand combat with Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, whom Netanyahu had recently made huge efforts to bring closer and who was perceived as delusional, no less, by Netanyahu's own party ministers. The phrase Sunday morning fever is beginning to take root in the Likud, as a way of referring to Netanyahus mood every Sunday when he returns from a weekend at home, recharged with a new rage and suspicion against the people surrounding him. Clearly, like in other cases, Netanyahu is reaching a dead end, restricting and binding himself. The match point will be the cabinet vote next week. Any opposition to the cancellation of the IPBC will have to happen before the vote, because if it passesall ministers will be committed to support the move at the Knesset. In other words, if Kahlon decides to stop the law against the IPBC, his clash with the prime minister will have to take place before next Sundays vote. The finance minister did not attend the cabinet meeting on Sunday or the coalition party leaders meeting, which was scheduled to discuss the cancelation of the IPBC. Kahlon is no patsy. He did not wish to lend a hand to a spin by the prime minister during the meeting. Kahlon knows that this whole issue is a test, a test of his relationship with the prime minister, a test of his conduct vis-a-vis the public. Will Kahlon give in to Netanyahu and agree to shut down the IPBC, or will he refuse to provide the huge sums involved in disbanding the IPBC and going back to the old Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA)? I believe Kahlon will stick to the financial issue: if Netanyahu is able to prove that he can cancel the IPBC for less than NIS 10 million, Kahlon will not be able to object and will vote in favor of shutting down the IPBC. If it costs more, and we are currently talking about NIS 400 million, Kahlon will say: The public elected me to protect the public budget and divide it properly. I cannot approve such sums. But what if Netanyahu tells Kahlon that it will cost NIS 300 million, and that if Kahlon refuses to approve it he will go for early elections (Although elections are actually an insurance policy for the IPBC)? What did I tell you? A small test for Netanyahu, a big test for Kahlon. The massacre in Mosul and its surroundings has already begun. Everyone is killing and massacring everyone. Not just ISIS. The world is watching. The world knows. And the world is keeping quiet. Only several weeks ago, it happened in Aleppo in Syria. The big hospital was ruined. The world knows, watches and keeps silent. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The worlds greatest power has decided not to intervene. A few observers. Some air support. Nothing more. This was legitimized by US President Barack Obama. He had promised to intervene if Syria were to use chemical weapons. There was a short-term illusion regarding an agreement. The use of chemical weapons continues. The massacre has only expanded. Refugees flee Mosul, Iraq. The world watches, knows and keeps quiet (Photo: AP) Every mass slaughter requires every human being, definitely a Jew, to think about the worlds silence in the 1940s. There is a double lesson from the Holocaust, both national and human. The national lesson has been learned. Israel can defend itself. The human, universal lesson has never been learned. It didnt start today. Since World War II, 86 million people have been killed, and mainly slaughtered. According to a study of the American Public Health Association, the figure is 190 million. Five million in Congo. And the world kept quiet. A million during the Russian invasion and control of Afghanistan. And the world kept quiet. Three million in Bangladeshs war of independence. And the world kept quiet. About half a million in Algerias war of independence. And the world kept quiet. Millions of children, refugees and hungry people in Nigeria and Somalia, because of jihad, and the world kept quiet. Most of these wars included similarand even more seriousmassacres than the one taking place in Syria. And the world kept quiet. Just to put things in proportions, 80,000 to 120,000 people have been killed in all of Israels wars against Arab countries, and about 12,000 were killed as part of Israels control over the Palestinians. A majority of the people killed in the world are innocent. An absolute majority of those killed in Israels wars against the Palestinians are either fighters or terrorists. But lets not say that the world in general, and the free world in particular, does not have a conscience. On the contrary: a protest is going on. A protest against Israel. Almost exclusively against Israel. Millions are being killed in the world. But the protests, the articles, the rallies are mainly against Israel. Most of the resolutions of the United Nations Human Rights Council, in its previous and current round, are against Israel. While Israels contribution to world violence is insignificant, most of the worlds protest is against Israel. Masses filled up the squares of London, San Francisco, Paris and Amsterdam in protest of Israels massacre of the Palestinians, a massacre that never happened. There have been nearly zero protests against the rest of the massacres in the world. When its not about Israel, the world is not only silent, it is also hypocritical. Over the last weekend, protestors disrupted an event on a campus in London in which an Israeli was slated to perform. The protestors came from the countries which carry out the greatest massacres, and were joined by young members of the British Left and the Labour Party, who are afflicted with the anti-Semitism disease. And in another event, the House of Lords hosted a conference in which Jews were blamed for the Holocaust. It must be said, loud and clear: the manipulative and poisonous protest against Israel paves the way for the free worlds silence in light of the massacres and crimes against humanity that are really taking place. There is no global protest against massacres. There is a groundless and exaggerated protest against Israel. There are no human morals here. There is hypocrisy and political fraud. One can understand why international bodies are keeping quiet in light of real crimes in the world, while incessantly condemning Israel. These bodies have a dark majority. The problem is that those who are supposed to deal with human rights are joining this dark majority. And when representatives from Israel participate in international forums and talk about Israels crimes in front of representatives of the countries responsible for crimes against humanity, and when they address left-wing organizations in the world that are staying silent in light of the real crimes and are only condemning Israel, they are aiding to this enormous fraud. This is not concern for human rights; this is a moral crime. Minister of Finance Moshe Kahlon said Monday morning that he is opposed to the shutdown of the Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC), which is set to replace the long-standing Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA). "I will not cut one agora (one one-hundredth of a shekel, the equivalent of cents to US dollars. -ed) from government ministries," Kahlon said at a meeting of the Knesset Finance Committee. He continued, "Behind all of the numbers and dilemmas are people who have been absorbed and are being absorbed, and god forbid will be fired. If I have to place a veto (over the closure) in the government I'll place it Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman spoke out Monday against the government following recent criticism directed against the IDF for alleged failures in locating and eliminating Hamas terror tunnels during Operation Protective Edge in 2014. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter "All of the criticism should be pointed at the government ranks, because the IDF implemented decisions those ranks made," sid Lieberman during a meeting meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. "I have heard lashings-out by political figuresincluding MKsagainst IDF major generals. It cannot be that IDF officers become objects for attacks, certainly not by those seated around this table here," he continued. "The entire attempt to drag the military into a political conflict around Protective Edge is not right. The military implemented decisions that the governmental ranks made. Don't try to drag the IDF into this pointless argument," he urged. Minister Lieberman at the committee meeting. "The military implemented decisions that the governmental ranks made." (Photo: Gil Yohanan) The defense minister also spoke of recent publications claiming that the famous Zvika Force story from the 1973 Yom Kippur War is a myth, describing it as "an attempt to erase the basic Israeli narrative and hurt the state of Israel's symbols." The Zvika Force incident is said to have occurred during the war in the Golan Heights. It involved a single tank, under the command of Lieutenant Zvi Greengold, nicknamed Zvika, who managed to hold back an entire Syrian tank battalion through an imaginative use of deceptive strategy. Greengold had his tank, situated at an elevated position in the dark, constantly move around, firing shells from different positions in order to give the Syrian forces the impression that they were facing a larger Israeli force. In addition, Greengold repeatedly referred to Zvika Force ("Koach Zvika" in Hebrew), a made-up moniker for the tank force he was pretending to command, on the radioassuming the Syrians might be listening in and may be fooled. For his actions, Greengold was awarded the Israeli Medal of Valor, the highest military decoration the state of Israel awards. US Secretary of State John Kerry and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson are hosting a meeting in London in which they hope to break Libya's political stalemate and resolve its acute cash shortage. Monday's session comes after the UN-backed Libyan government's failure to win legitimacy - or to function at all - amid deep political fragmentation. Kerry and Johnson are joined by designated Prime Minister Fayez Serraj and other diplomats. The ministerial meeting is designed to deal with economic and security issues facing the government. A bill proposal aimed at canceling the launch of the new Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC) which is set to replace the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA)is expected to receive the support of the coalition next week, Ynet has learned. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter A survey conducted by Ynet among members of the government on Sunday evening found that Likud ministers Miri Regev, Yariv Levin, Ofir Akunis and Tzachi Hanegbi intend to vote in favor the initiative spearheaded by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Ministers Yuval Steinitz, Yisrael Katz and Ze'ev Elkin have yet to announce their position, but they are expected to eventually lend their support to the bill as well. Minister Haim Katz has also yet to reveal his position on the matter. Prime Minister Netanyahu (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg) Only two Likud ministers are expected to oppose the bill: Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who in the previous term initiated the public broadcasting reform that formed the IPBC, and Social Equality Minister Gila Gamliel. While most Likud ministers support the prime minister's initiative to close down the IPBC and instead keep the IBA on air in its current format, the three Bayit Yehudi ministers all oppose the bill. Ministers Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked have, in the past, expressed their support of the new IPBC, and Minister Uri Ariel shares their position. Shas ministers Aryeh Deri and David Azoulay have stated their opposition to closing the new IPBC and have made this position clear to the prime minister, while Kulanu ministers Moshe Kahlon and Yoav Galant also want to keep the IPBC open. Other partners in the coalition have yet to announce their position on the matter, but Yisrael Beytenu ministers Avigdor Lieberman and Sofa Landver, as well as Minister Yaakov Litzman from United Torah Judaism, are all expected to support the prime minister's initiative to cancel the public broadcasting reform. Assuming the government does approve the bill, the next step would be to bring it to a vote at the Knesset. If the ministers currently against closing the IPBC choose to vote against the prime minister at the Knesset as well, it could have far-reaching ramifications. Netanyahu and Kahlon go head-to-head Finance Minister Kahlon, for example, decided to boycott both the cabinet meeting and the coalition leaders meeting on Sunday in protest of Netanyahu's plans to bring the initiative to a vote in the government. In response, the prime minister decided to postpone the vote to next week. On Monday, Kahlon said he sees "no need to change the existing agreements," noting that while coalition agreements do allow for the prime minister to deal with issues relating to the media, "there is also (a clause noting) that (the spending of) every sum over NIS 10 million is under my responsibility." Finance Minister Kahlon (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg) Kahlon announced that if he has to veto the initiative in the governmenthe will, adding that if Netanyahu wanted to promote such a bill, he "would have to make sure there is strong public broadcasting in place, and tell me where the money's coming from. If he can tell me where the money's coming from, I'll listen." "Closing down the IPBC means an immediate loss of NIS 1.7 billion, Kahlon went on to say, adding that "Behind all of the numbers and deliberations are people who were hired and are still being hired who could lose their jobs." "There needs to be a balanced (broadcasting) authority. There's a lot of money here, and (closing the IPBC) means wasting hundreds of millions of shekels and unless we're convinced there's no wastewe won't let it happen," the finance minister declared. The IPBC has already started preparing to go live and has committed to launching between January-July 2017. But sources within the new broadcasting company say the prime minister's attempts to close it down are preventing the IPBC from bringing in new employees. 'Leftists' took over the IPBC As part of his efforts to close down the IPBC, Netanyahu and his associates claim that "leftists" managed to infiltrate the new corporation, including chairman Gil Omer, despite the fact that it was the prime minister who signed off in April on the appointments of the corporation's council, which includes Omer. The document signed by Netanyahu states that "Pursuant to my authority under the Israeli Public Broadcasting Law, after receiving the recommendation of the search committee pursuant to the Israeli Public Broadcasting Law, and after the Appointments Review Committee, as defined in the Government Companies Law, approved the appointment subject to your commitment to avoid conflicts of interest, I hereby appoint you to the Israel Broadcasting Council." The prime minister's letter approving the appointment of the IPBC's council The prime minister concluded his letter to the council with, "I wish you success in fulfilling your important role." Netanyahu, who is also the communications minister, recently met with the IBA's special manager Bari Bar-Zion to see if the existing IBA could continue broadcasting. Meanwhile, representatives of the IBA workers unions wrote a letter to Finance Minister Kahlon, telling him they were "fully prepared to take significant re-organization steps, including complete managerial flexibility and marching the IBA to the top as a modern, technological, journalistic body." Copies of the letter were also sent to Netanyahu, Chairman of the Knesset's House Committee MK Yoav Kisch, and coalition chairman MK David Bitan, who first initiated the legislation the prime minister is now pushing. The letter, sent on behalf of the IBA's hundreds of employees, described the uncertainty they were facing about their future. "We are willing to make far-reaching changes and could help you save public broadcasting as well as the hundreds of employees," they told Kahlon. The letter was signed by the leaders of six different workers' unions in the IBA. In it, they commit to rehabilitating the IBA while still "meeting the budget defined for the IPBC, meaning NIS 700 million." BEIRUT - The Lebanese parliament elected former army commander and strong ally of the militant group Hezbollah Michel Aoun as president on Monday, ending a 29-month presidential vacuum as part of a political deal that is expected to make Sunni Muslim leader Saad al-Hariri prime minister. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Aoun, 81, secured a simple majority of votes in the house after a chaotic session that saw several rounds of voting because extra ballots appeared in the ballot box each time. He failed to get elected by a two thirds majority in the first round, as had been widely expected, but later managed to garner 83 votes out of 127 lawmakers present at the session, well above the absolute majority of 65 needed to win. X Members of parliament broke out in thunderous applause after Aoun finally was declared president by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. His supporters across the country erupted in cheers as they watched the proceedings on huge screens set up in the streets. Fireworks echoed across Beirut and brief celebratory gunfire could also be heard in the capital. Aoun, an MP, was shown smiling in his seat. The Lebanese presidency is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing system. Aoun's election is seen by many as a clear victory for the pro-Iranian axis in the Middle East, giving a boost to Hezbollah and the Shiite Lebanese group's ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad. Lebanon has been without a head of state for over two years after President Michel Suleiman stepped down at the end of his term in May 2014. Since then, 45 sessions to elect a new leader have failed due to political infighting that led to of a lack of quorum as Aoun's block and allied Hezbollah lawmakers boycotted the sessions because his election was not guaranteed. Aoun meets with Hezbollah leader Nasrallah (Photo: AP) In the end, it took an about-face by former prime minister Hariri, who formally endorsed Aoun for president last weekreportedly in exchange for Aoun promising him the position of prime minister. Hariri's decision to endorse Aoun marked a major political concession reflecting the diminished role of Saudi Arabia in Lebanon. Saudi had backed Hariri and his allies through years of political struggle with Hezbollah and its allies. Hariri's own financial misfortunes have also played a big part in bringing about the breakthrough. His political network in Lebanon was hit by a cash crunch caused by financial troubles at his Saudi-based construction firm, Saudi Oger. Analysts say the position of prime minister, which he previously held from 2009 to 2011, should help him shore up his support ahead of parliamentary elections that are due to be held next year. Lebanon's new president, Aoun, and expected prime minister al-Hariri (Photo: AP) Aoun has a wide support base, mostly among Lebanon's educated youth, but is a divisive figure in Lebanon for his role in the 1975-90 civil war. Still, there is cautious hope that his election would breathe some life into state institutions that have been paralyzed for too long. Aoun was quickly sworn in as Lebanon's 13th president, pledging political and economic reform and urging a "real partnership" among notoriously divided Lebanese political factions. Following the parliament session, Aoun is expected to drive to the presidential palace in the southeastern Beirut suburb of Baabda, returning exactly 26 years after he was forced out of it as army commander and interim premier by Syrian forces and Lebanese troops loyal to a rival commander. Aoun is due to meet MPs later this week on their preferences for prime minister. He is obliged to designate the candidate with the greatest support among MPs, expected to be Hariri. Minister of the Interior and of the Development of the Negev and Galilee Aryeh Deri, leader of the Shas party, has decided to resign his Knesset seat, but keep his government minister position. Deri's move is not unusual for ministers, who often resign from the Knesset so that another party member may get their seat in the Israeli parliament, while the party maintains its strength inside the government. The Knesset opened its winter session on Monday amid dissension over the future of the new Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC), which the Coalition is expected to cancel, and that of the illegal outpost Amona. During his speech, Netanyahu promised to 'Rehabilitate' the IPBC. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The session opened to a raucous start, with President Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Speaker of the Knesset Yuli Edelstein and Coalition Chairperson David Bitan speaking before the Knesset. The main bone of contention was the over the Public Broadcasting Corporation. The opening on the Knesset Winter Session: L to R in frint: Netanyahu, Rivlin and Edelstein (Photo: Gil Yohanan) The Israeli parliamentarians are expected to debate and vote on these contentious issues, as well as pass the bi-annual state budget. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Photo: Gil Yohanan) But it is not just members of the opposition who are outraged by a series of controversial bill proposals. Recent days saw a charged atmosphere among coalition partners, as well. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu postponed a government vote on a proposal to cancel the broadcasting reform and close down the IPBC, which is meant to replace the existing Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA). The move is expected to get the government's supportdespite objections from Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, among othersfollowing which it will be brought to a vote at the Knesset. Rivlin referred to the possible cancellation of the IPBC in his own speech, prior to Netanyahu's. "Those who are for public broadcasting cannot have it become a 'comissar mouthpiece,' and those who oppose it need to come out and say it clearly." He added that "If you want public broadcasting, it must be impartial to all parties." Another explosive issue is the future of the illegal outpost Amona, which the High Court of Justice (HCJ) ordered to evacuate and demolish two years ago after determining its houses were built on privately-owned Palestinian land. The demolition is set for December, but legislators on the right-wing are pushing a so-called "regulations bill" that would legalize Amona and other illegal outposts in the West Bank. A third legislation proposal that raised Kahlon's ire is one by MK David Bitan (Likud), which seeks to automatically appoint MKs and ministers who served in these roles for three yearseven if not consecutivelyas directors in government companies, without them having to demonstrate any other skills. The government vote on the "Regulation Bill" was supposed to take place on Sunday, but was postponed to next week after Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit warned he would otherwise have a hard time asking the High Court to postpone the evacuation. If all of this is not enough, the Knesset is also supposed to pass the new bi-annual state budget, as well as vote on other coalition bills, such as Bitan's proposal to prevent Israelis from speaking against Israel at international forums. And just like previous Knesset sessions, this one will likely also see repeated attempts to expand the coalition by bringing in the Zionist Union Party. The Knesset Winter Session (Photo: Gil Yohanan) Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein also spoke before the Knesset, hinting at a recent court ruling in a civil case that implicated Likud MK Oren Hazan with using hard drugs, saying "We have a great responsibility in shaping society. Almost any behavior and every statement made by an MK incurs reactions, and just as it could at times create a positive discourse, it can also inflame passions. In addition, Interior Minister and Development of the Negev and Galilee Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas) resigned from the Knesset but stated he will remain a minister, so as to allow another Shas member to become and MK. A Palestinian policeman opened fire at a checkpoint at the entrance to Ramallah on Monday afternoon, wounding three IDF soldiers. He was then shot dead by troops from the Paratroopers Brigade's 202nd Battalion, which is deployed at the area. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The site of the attack (: ") X One of the soldiers was moderately wounded, suffering gunshot wounds to his lower body, while the other two were lightly hurt, suffering injuries to their limbs from fragments. They were taken to the Hadassah Medical Center's Ein Karem and Mount Scopus campuses respectively. Scene of the attack (Photo: TPS) The attacker was identified as Muhammad Turkman, aged 25 from Jenin, who reportedly made his way on foot from Ramallah to the Focus Checkpoint armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle. The shooter, Muhammad Turkman An official from the Palestinian security forces told Ynet that Turkman worked as a guard at the Palestinian Legislative Council building in Ramallah. The official noted that Turkman headed for the checkpoint, through which the Palestinian Authority's top officials pass every day, straight after the end of his shift without revealing his plans to any of his co-workers. The Kalashnikov used by the terrorist in the attack This is the third terrorist attack since the weekend. On Friday night, a terrorist tried to run over soldiers at a checkpoint near Ofra, and on Saturday evening there was a shooting attack on Route 60, in which no one was injured. ANKARA -- Turkey wants the operation on Raqqa, ISIS's main stronghold in Syria, to start after Mosul and Euphrates Shield operations have been completed, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said on Monday. "Turkey's stance on the Raqqa operation is clear. It would be better both militarily and strategically to conduct this operation after the Mosul operation and Turkey's Euphrates Shield operation are completed," Kurtulmus told reporters in Ankara. Leader of the Opposition, Isaac Herzog, addressed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his speech at the opening of the Knesset's winter session, and accused him of carrying out a "democratically-assisted coup." Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter "From your first day as prime minister," said Herzog. "You lead an endless discourse of hatred and incitement. You keep legitimizing racist sentiment, fear and intimidation. It starts with hatred of the other, the Arab, and moves against artists, journalists, and finally to the court system, IDF commanders and other officials in the political system. Your voice is not heard against difficult social phenomena and moral dilemmas in Israeli society. The only conflicts you vigorously and tirelessly manage are conflicts between us, between the citizens of Israel." Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog (Photo: Gil Yohanan) "You are deliberately acting to silence the media, trying to psychologically influence anyone who criticizes you," added Herzog. "Every prime minister here has been hit hard, all of your predecessors were caught in the line of fire. That's the job, and not just in the goverment, mind you, but also in the opposition. Grow up. That's the arena in which we live. Your attitude toward the the IPBC reflects your attitude toward the media in general, which is an out-and-out disgrace." The comments made by Herzog underline the tension in the Knesset Winter Session between Netanyahu's coalition government and opposition parties. In addition to Herzog's sharp words, Arab lawmakers walked out on Netanyahu's speech as a pre-emptive protest to a planned boycott of them by members of the governing coalition. Arab lawmakers walk out during Netanyahu's speech (Photo: Gil Yohanan) Lawmakers from the Joint List say they are protesting the coalition's plan to snub their speeches during the first week of the Knesset Winter Session, which begins Monday. The coalition is angry that the Arab lawmakers defiantly stayed away from the funeral of late President Shimon Peres. The Arab lawmakers say the coalition's planned snub is "anti-democratic, racist and dangerous." The lawmakers rose from their seats as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walked toward the dais during the opening session. The State Attorney's Office requested on Monday to postpone the evacuation of the illegal outpost of Amona, set for December, to allow time to examine alternative solutions for its residents. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Two years ago, the High Court of Justice (HCJ) ruled that the outpost must be evacuated and demolished after determining it was built on privately-owned Palestinian lands. In its petition, the state claims it is seeking to carry out the evacuation peacefully and without incident, but that it is unable to provide alternative living solutions for residents within the next two months. The state emphasized that if the court rejects the request, it will be prepared to carry out the evacuation by the date set in its rulingDecember 25, 2016. Amona residents Among the alternatives mentioned was moving the settlers' homes to a site referred to as "Amona North" and another option was moving to Shvut Rachel, another settlement in the West Bank about an hour's drive away. The state cited an opinion from the Shin Bet and the National Security Council saying the evacuation could have an effect on "security and diplomatic aspects in the entire area." The state said it would to present the top secret opinion to the court if required to do so. Residents of Amona are strongly opposed to a relocation agreement. In a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, residents said they intend to "mount a public, popular strugglerespectable and difficultthat would unite all of our supporters, both within the outpost and without. This will be the fight of our lives for our home." Despite this objection, the State Attorney's Office wrote in its request to the court that "Different officials in the settler leadership, including senior officials, have expressed an agreement in principle to move Amona to a permanent location in eastern Shvut Rachel. For understandable reasons, we are unable to elaborate on those talks." The request for eviction postponement comes after a flurry of activity surrounding Amona in recent weeks that was punctuated by a meeting between Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beytenu), Prime Minister Netanyahu and Bayit Yehudi officials. Legislators on the right-wing are pushing a so-called "regulations bill" that would legalize Amona and other illegal outposts in the West Bank. In its request for extension, however, the state emphasized it is not seeking to legalize the outpost in its current location. "The attorney general expressed his opinion that there is a legal impediment to promote the above-mentioned bill proposal in light of the illegality it entails, being contradictory to international and national law," the State Attorney's Office wrote in the request. Yesh Din, the legal NGO that represents the Palestinian land owners, said the extension request "is an insult to the law and an insult to the High Court. The court gave the state two years to prepare for the evacuation of Amona, precisely to avoid any last-minute political evasion attempts. The request provides no real reason to postpone the evacuation, and we hope the court rejects it quickly. The rejection of the request would allow the state to turn its efforts to what it should have been focused onthe enforcement of the law and returning the stolen lands to the legal owners, who are the residents of the Palestinian villages of Silwad, Ein Yabrud and Taibe." MK Tamar Zandberg (Meretz) also slammed the state's request for postponement, saying "How absurd it is that a criminal government is requesting an extension from the court in an attempt to pass on its criminality. It's time the Netanyahu government stops with this Amona business; there is no point in rehashing this while we all know it is time to tell the settlers that we can't continue this criminality. It is time to put this fiasco behind us." SARAJEVO -- A Bosnian court has sentenced seven people to a total of more than 12 years in jail for joining ISIS in Syria and for illegally owning weapons. The court said Monday that the seven were found guilty of joining IS between 2013 and 2014. The sentences ranged from one year to three years. Of the 130 Bosnian citizens who had previously left, nearly 50 reportedly died in battles JALALABAD -- ISIS claimed responsibility for a suicide attack that devastated a gathering of local elders in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar on Monday. Afghan officials said four people were killed and seven wounded in the attack, while a statement from Islamic State said 15 "apostates" were killed and 25 wounded. Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar which is the main stronghold of Islamic State in Afghanistan, said the meeting of elders had been called to settle a dispute between local people when the bomber staged his attack. "Elders from Pachiragam district had gathered in Jalalabad city at a house to resolve their internal disputes and make a front against Daesh (Islamic State) but a suicide bomber disrupted the meeting, killed and wounded several people including elders," he said. The militant group, which in Afghanistan is based mainly in Nangarhar, issued a picture of the suicide bombber and said he had opened fire on the gathering before detonating his explosive belt, an account corroborated by survivors. President Ashraf Ghani issued a statement condemning the attack. DOHA -- A United Arab Emirates court sentenced seven people to up to life in prison for establishing a cell linked to the Lebanese Shi'ite militant group Hezbollah, state media said on Monday. An Emirati man and two Lebanese men were handed life sentences and an Egyptian woman and another Emirati man were each jailed for 10 years, according to state news agency WAM. An Iraqi and another Lebanese man were each jailed for 15 years. The charges included "handing over information about a government department" and "oil production in the UAE" as well as "maps of a gas field" to Hezbollah, WAM said. A short drive from Budapest, and we arrived at the Balaton Limnological Institute, along the green banks of Lake Balaton on a warm August afternoon. Balaton Limnological Institute has been a world leading research facility since its establishment in 1927, and Lake Balaton, the largest natural lake in central Europe, has played an important role in the landscape across geological time scales. The lake remains locally and regionally famous as a summer tourist destination, and despite ongoing human dependencies it continues to support diverse wetlands and species. Students lead all presentations in The Student Conference on Conservation Science (SCCS) series, including the one held in Hungary. In Hungary, there were also a few non-student plenary speakers at SCCS, whose talks are aimed to offer students insights to topical themes and discussions in the field of conservation science. I was lucky enough to get to spend a few hours in the centre library - lined with stacks of limnological archives peeking out of polished wooden shelves. I was in the library, along with my fellow Society for Conservation Biology Europe Section (SCB - ES) colleague, Barbara Mihok, to lead a discussion on Women in Science. The Student Conference on Conservation Science (SCCS) series, including the one held in Hungary. In Hungary, there were also a few non-student plenary speakers at SCCS, whose talks are aimed to offer students insights to topical themes and discussions in the field of conservation science. I was lucky enough to get to spend a few hours in the centre library - lined with stacks of limnological archives peeking out of polished wooden shelves. I was in the library, along with my fellow Society for Conservation Biology Europe Section (SCB - ES) colleague, Barbara Mihok, to lead a discussion on Women in Science. Participants of Women in Science discussion at SCCS Hungary. Original photo by: Ferenc Jordan Given ongoing concerns and discussions about how to best overcome challenges faced with representation of women in scientific fields, Barbara and I believed a facilitated discussion and uplifting presentation would be a useful contribution for advancing this dialogue. We hoped that our event could foster an open and secure space for students to share and discuss with each other about diversity in science, specifically with regards to challenges faced by women, and also to share solutions and ideas about how to overcome these challenges. Our Women in Science discussion aimed to identify potential barriers to women in science fields, and also to identify actions that each of us could take to move toward solutions and change in our respective field of science and our workplaces. Along with the discussion we included a presentation from Sarah Dalrymple (SCB-ES) who shared her own experiences, career development, and inspirational words with all workshop participants. Attended by both women and men, the discussion was generally positive, and diverse. We heard and shared experiences, stories, and identified actions that we each could take to be more proactive and supportive in driving the change we wish to see in terms of more women in leadership roles, and alongside each of us in our career progression. Along with my passion for freshwater conservation comes my passion to ensure more representative and equitable experiences for women in the sciences. It was a rewarding experience to attend a conference held at a bastion of freshwater science and to lead a discussion on women in science. I took a lot from the workshop, both in terms of learning from others and in terms of how I would lead such an event differently if I were to be given the opportunity to do it again in the future. For example, while Barbara and I initially felt it would be the most inclusive to open our session to both women and men, we found that the dialogue based approach resulted in men's voices being heard more than the women's voices. To have a more balanced approach to these discussions, we determined that we could both strengthen our facilitation approach, and hold multiple different events, including several women only events to support a more active dialogue between women, and then a single event that includes men in the discussion. Barbara and I have both taken courses on facilitation, and are increasingly working to overcome challenges with diversity and inclusion in the work place, but you can always refine your approaches and gear them better to the audiences of each event. We both welcome feedback from participants, and non-participants based on this reflection, and ultimately aim to strengthen and diversify the types of events that we and others can hold for women and other minorities in science , giving clear consideration to intersection of gender and other factors, at professional conferences. I am thankful for the opportunity to have participated in the SCCS Hungary conference, and welcome the chance to participate in more SCCS conferences around the world. Along with a lot of learning, I also took away new professional connections, friendships and experiences. -- Post by Steph Januchowski-Hartley About the author : Steph is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Universite Paul Sabatier in Toulouse, France. In addition to her research on dam impacts on freshwater fishes, she also draws, writes poetry and is an active member of the Society for Conservation Biology! Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has appeared on state television, wearing combat fatigues and urging ISIS fighters in Mosul to surrender. He says, "we will close in on Daesh from all angles and God willing, we will cut the snake's head." He used the Arabic acronym for the group. He spoke from the town of Shura, south of Mosul, where he was visiting troops on Monday. Al-Abadi says ISIS "will have no way out, and no way to escape," urging the fighters to give up as the Iraqi military stands poised to enter the city. He adds that "either they die, or surrender." Civic leaders get up-close look at strategic mission More than 20 civic leaders within San Antonio and its surrounding communities boarded a C-5M Super Galaxy Oct. 27 bound for Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, to get an up-close look at the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command and the 307th Bomb Wing. The two-day event included and a tour of the B-52 Stratofortress and ride in its simulator; a U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command briefing; military working dog, explosive ordnance, and life support demonstrations; and a walk through of the base museum and aircraft static display park. A handful of attendees also witnessed an in-air refueling of the C-5M Super Galaxy by a KC-135 Stratotanker on the flight home. This was a great opportunity to show our civic leaders another aspect of the Air Force mission that they would otherwise likely never see, said Col. David Enfield, 433rd Mission Support Group commander who attended the trip on behalf of the 433rd Airlift Wing commander. I think a lot of people dont realize just how much is involved in the Global Strike Command mission. You could tell from their wide eyes, smiles and many questions that they were very intrigued and excited to be here. It was a great time for them and us. Steve Young, VIA Metropolitan Transit vice president of information technology, said he was appreciative for the opportunity to learn more about the Air Force and Air Force Reserve and how they work together. This was a chance for me to learn more about what the Air Force does and how they help our country, he said. Now Ill be able to go back and share what Ive learned with others in the community. We really have seen the great value Reservists bring to our country and we have an even greater respect for them in seeing what they do day-to-day. Dale Cochran from United Services Automobile Association said he was also excited to get a peek into the Air Force mission as his company does many dealings with military members. The military is very near and dear to us at USAA, he said. Theyre an important part our mission and why we exist quite frankly; and so when I had this opportunity, I thought it would be a great chance to further increase my military acumen, so that I can better help members in the future. Cochran, the son of a former Air Force medic, noted that one of the biggest highlights of the trip for him was seeing the B-52. Being able to see and touch the B-52 was amazing, he said. It is such an integral part of our history and apparently its going to be part of our future as well since those planes are going to be around for a long time to come." Robert Imler, a self-employed community and government relations consultant, said he was also thrilled for the opportunity to see a different part of the Air Force mission that he had never seen before. This has been a great trip, and Ive learned so much, he said. This is the third opportunity Ive had to attend a trip such as this and I tell you what, it just makes you proud to be a citizen of the United States. Some of the highlights for Imler included flying in the C-5M and seeing the military working dogs in action. I have flown on a number of aircraft, but never the C-5, he said. It was awesome. Also, the working dogs demonstration yesterday was outstanding. EOD did an amazing job and everything has just been great. You guys hit it out of the ballpark with this one. As the tour came to an end, the 307th BW commander, Col. Bruce Cox, thanked everyone for visiting and for their support of the 433rd Airlift Wing and the Air Force Reserve as a whole. Its these type of outreaches that are going to continue to strengthen the relationship weve built between the services of our nation and the civilian communities surrounding them, he said. So please keep doing what youre doing. The 433rd needs your support. Your positive relationship will continue to grow and spread across the nation. Commander unveils Deepwater Horizon painting Air Force Reserve Chief, Lt. Gen. Maryanne Miller, Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Darby Perrin and Commander Air Mobility Command Gen. Carlton D. Everhart III unveil the painting "Deepwater Horizon" at the 2016 Airlift/Tanker Association and Air Mobility Command Symposium in Nashville, Tennessee. The painting, created by Perrin, is the newest addition to the Air Force Art Program and commemorates the cleanup efforts 910th Airlift Wing's citizen airmen assisted with during the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. "Deepwater Horizon", depicts two C-130H Hercules Modular Aerial Spray Systems and Citizen Airmen from the 910th Airlift Wing, Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio, in the cleanup effort following the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The painting will join nearly 9,000 other works in the Air Force Art Program. These works document the history of Air Force Airmen, equipment, locations and activities. While the 910th AW's aerial sprays are commonly known for insect and vegetation control, the wing has assisted the U.S. Coast Guard with oil spill cleanup for almost 20 years. The cleanup mission lasted five weeks and AF Reserve aircrews sprayed approximately 30,000 acres with oil dispersant during the cleanup effort. (U.S. Air Force photo by Matthew A. Ebarb) Living by the words of their motto, these things we do that others may live, Air Force Reserve Pararescuemen, known as PJs, from Portlands 304th Rescue Squadron assisted in recovering a hiker who was declared missing October 25. When 31-year-old Melvin Burtch didnt return home that evening, Skamania County Sherriff initiated search efforts calling on the 304th RQS and area civil search and rescue teams. Early October 26, a team of four PJs scoured steep rocky terrain near the Oregon-Washington border until nightfall with the assistance of volunteers, civil search and rescue teams. Information was obtained to pinpoint the GPS coordinates for Burtchs cell phone allowing searchers to navigate to the cell phone location where they found Burtchs body within 50 yards of the location of the phone. It is believed that Burtch perished from injuries he sustained from a possible 700-foot fall. Darkness setting in disallowed a recovery until morning. Staff Sgt. John Mellencamp, 304th team leader, said his team traversed a small ridgeline using trees and terrain to block potential rockfall. They also stayed close together to further mitigate hazards. Our goal was to get in and get out as fast as we could to keep rescuers safe, said Mellencamp. The 304th learned Burtch was an Army veteran who served two combat tours so they took out an American flag draping it over him. His body was then lowered via a litter 600 feet out of the rock hazard area. From there, they transported him on ATVs through the trail system. We wanted to return Melvin with dignity, said Mellencamp. It was awesome for us to be able to work with the community to give closure to Melvins family in a respectful way. We hope his family gets solace out of that, said Mellencamp. While the terrain presented dangers to everyone's personal safety, The PJs that went into the screefield were extremely efficient and motivated and were able to safely extricate Melvin because they are so well trained, said Mellencamp. We wanted to keep everyone safe because the SAR community here means a lot to us, the people we are going to get, mean a lot to us, and being a part of the SAR community here means a lot to us, said Mellencamp. By doing civil SARs not only do we help the community, but we become better rescue special specialist when we are called overseas to do combat search and rescue, he said. We are proud to be a part of this community and the 304th team. According to a representative from Mortgage Choice, a home buyer with a $1 million mortgage paying 5% could save $683 a month (or more than $204,000 over 25 years) by switching to a 3.78 per rate, with the switching cost recoverable in two months. Such huge savings help explain why remortgaging has increased three-fold during the past 25 years to represent 30% of current loan approvals. John Flavell, chief executive officer of Mortgage Choice, encourages property buyers to shop around for the best rates and terms. Property investors and owner occupiers paying more than 4.5 per cent interest on their mortgage could be paying too much," he said. However, Christopher Foster-Ramsay, principal at Foster Ramsay Finance, warned property investors to not always go for the cheapest rates. "Cheapest is not always the best. It is important that consumers read the fine print to pick up any hidden fees and charges that may cost benefits or savings. The devil is in the detail." Go through this checklist of fees When youre refinancing, always pay attention to the timing. Settlement occurs when the contract is signed for the new loan and the funds are drawn. This involves paying off the existing loan using funds from the new loan. Stuart Wemyss, owner and director of ProSolution Private Clients, suggests going through the following checklist of fees to help you figure out whether the switch is worthwhile: Discharge fees from an existing lender This is an administrative fee ranging from $100 to $200 for processing the discharge of the mortgage or loan. Early repayment fee While most have been phased out, some of the smaller lenders can impose a fee ranging from $100 to $1000. Fixed rate break fee These fees can total up to several thousand dollars. Mortgage registration This state government fee is levied when the incumbent lender deregisters a mortgage and the new lender registers the new one. The cost will depend on your state, but ranges from $220 to $350. Application fees Can cost nothing but could be as exorbitant as $1000. Valuation fees Theyre not normally charged for standard properties but can cost from $100 to $300. Settlement fee This administrative fee is charged by the new lender and costs between $100 to $300. Lenders mortgage insurance LMI applies if more than 80% of a propertys value is borrowed. If can range from 2% to 4% of the loan amount, which often makes it too expensive to refinance. Related stories: Loans: Which One Is Right For You? RBA Holds Rates But Loans Are Still Hard To Get Increased affordability in the capital means that you should take the opportunity to inspect both houses and units on the market. All properties will have different strong points so, dont just settle on the first one you see, noted the report. Faced with such favourable circumstances, many real estate experts believe the Darwin property market is set for a rebound. Glenn Grantham, general manager at Raine & Horne, said theres been a surge in first-home buyers looking for established homes. Southern investors were also being tempted back to the Top End by the strong rental yields. We have seen a threefold increase in numbers at open homes and via our online inquiries over the last two weeks, which augurs well for the remainder of 2016 and the start of next year, Grantham said. A property at Wagaman, for example, recently attracted 12 buyer groups, whereas six months ago, one or two groups would have been the norm. This level of activity indicates Darwins real estate is in rebound mode and weve also seen an increase in offers. Grantham noted that many savvy buyers from the southern states had read about the drop in median house price in Darwin, and were starting to return, especially as our yields are above 4 per cent gross, which compares favourably against the likes of Sydney and Melbourne. Health News Scottsdale, Arizona - Everyone has one of those days, now and then, from the minute you wake up, you're dragging. But for people with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), those days are the norm. People with POTS may look fine, but they feel terrible, making it hard for other people to understand. POTS impacts your autonomic nervous system, which regulates body functions that we dont think about, such as breathing, blood pressure and heart rate. The condition can strike anyone, but it often appears during the teen years. Christine Esposito has suffered with POTS for many years. Her symptoms include dizziness, extreme fatigue, stomach problems and more. When a medical team at Mayo Clinic led by Dr. Jeremy Cutsforth-Gregory diagnosed her symptoms as POTS, the news came as a relief. She wasn't just too lazy to get out of bed and head to school. There was a real condition preventing her from doing so. For the Mayo Clinic News Network, reporter Vivien Williams shares Christine's story. POTS and other malfunctions of the autonomic nervous system are grouped under the umbrella term, dysautonomia. October is Dysautonomia Awareness Month, and experts hope to educate people about these conditions. Living Section San Luis, Arizona - On Saturday, November 12th, the San Luis Library will host Designing Thanksgiving Centerpieces at 5:00 p.m. Learn how to make your own centerpiece for Thanksgiving Day! Materials will be provided. There is no charge to attend; however space is limited and registration is required. For more information, and to register, contact Carmen Spaniard at (928) 627-8344 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. The San Luis Library is located at 1075 N 6th Avenue in San Luis. Lagos: Human Rights Watch on Monday accused Nigerian officials of sexually exploiting women and girls living in camps for victims of Boko Haram in the restive northeast. HRW said it had in July documented 43 cases of women and girls in seven internally displaced persons` (IDP) camps in Maiduguri, the epicentre of the seven-year Islamist insurgency, who had been abused by camp leaders, vigilante groups, policemen, and soldiers. "It is bad enough that these women and girls are not getting much-needed support for the horrific trauma they suffered at the hands of Boko Haram," said Mausi Segun, senior Nigeria researcher at HRW. "It is disgraceful and outrageous that people who should protect these women and girls are attacking and abusing them," he added. Government officials were not immediately available for comment on the allegations. Four of the victims told HRW they were drugged and raped, while 37 were coerced into sex through false marriage promises and material and financial assistance. "Many of those coerced into sex said they were abandoned if they became pregnant. They and their children have suffered discrimination, abuse, and stigmatisation from other camp residents," the global rights body said. HRW spoke to one 17-year-old girl who was raped and made pregnant by a policeman. "One day he demanded to have sex with me," she said. "I refused but he forced me. It happened just that one time, but soon I realised I was pregnant. "When I informed him about my condition, he threatened to shoot and kill me if I told anyone else. So I was too afraid to report him." HRW said irregular supplies of food, clothing, medicine, and other essentials in camps were making the women vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. "In some cases, men used their positions of authority and gifts of desperately needed food or other items to have sex with women," it said. Boko Haram has devastated northeast Nigeria in its quest to create an Islamist state, killing over 20,000 people and displacing 2.6 million from their homes. Since taking up arms against the Nigerian government in 2009, the jihadists have disrupted trade routes and farms. Now nearly 50,000 children are facing death by starvation if they don`t get food and almost 250,000 more are severely malnourished in Borno state, according to UNICEF. Chicago: At least 17 people were killed and over 40 injured in Chicago's street violence over the weekend. Two Chicago newspapers that analyzed police data from Friday afternoon to early today called it 2016's deadliest weekend. Chicago police couldn't immediately confirm that, though a spokesman said their weekend homicide count from Friday midnight through yesterday was 18. Either way, the toll surpassed the Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times' analysis of holiday weekends when violence typically spikes. The Tribune reports six people were fatally shot over Memorial Day weekend, five over Fourth of July, and 13 over Labor Day. The October weekend deaths included seven people under 20 years old. Seventeen-year-old twin brothers were killed in a Sunday drive-by. There's been a spike in street violence this year with over 600 homicides already. Washington: Hillary Clinton battled to contain renewed FBI focus on her emails Sunday as Donald Trump blitzed western states in the tightening race for the White House. Nine days before the vote, the 69-year-old former secretary of state hit the campaign trail hard in the battleground state of Florida. Clinton blazed through brunch at an Irish pub, an African-American Baptist church, a soul food restaurant, an early voting site and a rally at a gay nightclub. Much of her two-day visit to the Sunshine State focused on encouraging early voting. Clinton says a record 200 million Americans have registered to vote, 20 million of whom have already done so. But her campaign was jolted when FBI boss James Comey announced Friday that his agents are reviewing a newly discovered trove of emails, resurrecting an issue Clinton had hoped was behind her. The nominee`s response has been to hit out at Comey`s move as "deeply troubling" and to rally supporters to get out and vote, turning the tables on Trump by branding him as unfit to lead the nation. "When you`re knocked down, what matters is whether you get up again," she told a packed LGBT rally at a gay nightclub in Wilton Manors, just outside Fort Lauderdale. "With Donald, it`s always Donald Trump first and everyone else last. He abuses his power, he games the system and doesn`t care who is left holding the bag," she added. Allegations Clinton put the United States at risk by using a private email server while secretary of state were thrust back into the spotlight Friday when Comey revealed a renewed FBI probe into the matter based on a previously unknown trove of emails. Trump -- himself under fire for alleged sexual impropriety and facing misconduct allegations from 12 women -- has gleefully seized upon Comey`s move in an attempt to offset his own trailing in most polls. The Republican campaigned hard Sunday, attending church in Las Vegas, before leading three rallies in Nevada, Colorado and Albuquerque, New Mexico, whipping up his support base against Clinton. "We all know about Hillary`s mounting legal troubles, that she has brought onto herself with her serial, wilful, purposeful and deliberate criminal conduct," he told the crowed in New Mexico. "Hillary Clinton is not the victim, you the American people are the victims of this corrupt system in every single way and folks this is your last chance to save it," he said to chants of "lock her up." The 70-year-old tycoon repeatedly has described her email issue as "the single biggest scandal since Watergate" -- the wrongdoing that brought down Republican president Richard Nixon in 1974. The Clinton campaign has reacted with fury to Comey`s move, demanding that he explain in detail why he had effectively reopened an inquiry declared complete in July. "It was long on innuendo, short on facts," Clinton`s campaign chairman John Podesta told CNN. The US Senate`s top Democrat told the FBI chief that through "partisan actions, you may have broken the law." "As soon as you came into possession of the slightest innuendo related to secretary Clinton, you rushed to publicize it in the most negative light possible," Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said in a statement. While the candidate looking to make history as America`s first female president remains the overwhelming favorite, polls are narrowing.An ABC News/Washington Post survey put the Democratic presidential candidate just one point ahead of her Republican challenger. In Florida -- a must-win state for the tycoon -- Trump overcame a one-point deficit in September to enjoy a four-point lead, according to a New York Times Upshot/Siena College Research Institute poll. According to US media, the probe was renewed after agents seized a laptop used by Clinton`s close aide, Huma Abedin, and her now estranged husband, Anthony Weiner. The disgraced former congressman who resigned in 2011 after sending explicit online messages is under investigation over allegations he sent sexual overtures to a 15-year-old girl. US networks reported Sunday that the FBI had obtained a warrant to search the emails. According to CNN, discovery of the emails occurred weeks ago although the FBI did not reveal the matter until Friday. Trump`s campaign manager Kellyanne Conway lashed out at Clinton. "She just has to call her friend and confidante Huma Abedin and say tell us what`s in the emails, tell us what`s on the devices that you shared with your pedophile husband," Conway told Fox News. Clinton`s campaign has been overshadowed from the start by the scandal, but experts believe the FBI is unlikely to make significant progress before election day and few expect her to face charges. Patna: The Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar Police may confiscate the assets of Amit Kumar alias Bachcha Rai, the alleged kingpin of the Bihar topper scam, the state police said on Monday. "We have sent a proposal to the EOU of Bihar Police to lodge a case against Rai in connection with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and initiate process to confiscate his assets," said Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Manu Maharaj, who is also heading the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing into the scam. Rai, who is one of the main accused in the Class 12 toppers scam, has amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. The SIT has requested the EOU to take action against Rai on charges of fraud, misuse of his position and misappropriation of Rs 2 crore. "The EOU will look into the properties and ill-gotten money of Rai," an EOU official said. The state government has set up a separate branch, the Economic Offences Unit (EOU), to deal with the cases of economic crimes. Rai was arrested in June this year after the scam surfaced and is currently lodged in a jail along with other key accused, including Lalkeshwar Singh, former Chairman of the Bihar School Examination Board, and his wife Usha Sinha. Rai, Director-cum-Principal of V.R. college in Vaishali district that produced four fake toppers in arts and science streams in Class 12 this year, has so far denied his involvement in the scam. According to reports, the V.R. College used to charge Rs 25,000-40,000 for ensuring students got first division, and Rs 1 lakh and more for ensuring their ranking among the toppers in the examinations. Rai also sold Class 12 certificates for Rs 5 lakh to those who never appeared in the examinations. The SIT filed a chargesheet in the scam in September. Raipur: Seven people including five women were killed and atleast 10 others injured when the tractor they were travelling in skidded off the road and plunged into a canal in Chhattisgarh's Janjgir-Champa district, police said today. The accident took place late last evening near Faguram village under Dabra police station limits while the victims were returning after attending a family programme at Khorsipali in neighbouring Raigarh district, a senior police official said. "Five people identified as Prem Singh Gond (40), Omprakash Gond (15), Sonmati Gond (60), Mongra Bai Gond (62) and Gungun Gond (5) died on the spot. While two other women- Malti Markam (35) and Ganeshi Bai (40)--succumbed while being shifted to a Raigarh hospital," he said. They all were natives of Darramudi village in Malkharauda area of Janjgir-Champa, around 200 kms away from here. Atleast 24 people of a family were travelling on the tractor. The driver lost control over the steering at a sharp turn near Faguram village following which the vehicle went off the road and fell into the canal leaving two men, as many women and a girl child dead on the spot, he said. A police team rushed to the spot and admitted the injured to Kharsiya hospital from where the critical ones were shifted to Raigarh town. Two of the victims died while being shifted to Raigarh for further treatment, he added. A case has been registered in this connection, he said, adding further probe was on. New Delhi: Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti has accused a senior Delhi Police officer of not responding to him when he tried to reach out to him to seek help for two women who were allegedly "molested and assaulted" on Diwali. However, police said it was a dispute between two families in South Delhi's Green Park area that had resulted in cross FIRs including the charges of molestation by one of them. Bharti tweeted saying that DCP South, Ishwar Singh, did not respond to his calls. "On Diwali day 2 young women were assaulted n molested in Arjun Nagar but DCP (south) doesn't have time to respond to MLA's calls/SMSes...DCP(South) doesn't respond 2 MLA's SMS "Please call back, its urgent" n DP falls directly under LG with 0 accountability to AAP Govt.Y? (sic)" the AAP MLA said in a series of tweets. Singh could not be contacted over phone for his comments. New Delhi: Delhi BJP Monday condemned Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his remarks that there is a "widespread fear" about phones of judges being tapped, saying he has got into a habit of scoring "brownie points". Creating a sensation, Kejriwal Monday claimed there is a "widespread fear" about phones of judges being tapped, evoking an immediate and sharp denial by the government at an event attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Justice of India T S Thakur. "Time and again Kejriwal and his team have fooled itself by speaking on the issues of governance, national security and judiciary which are not in their working ambit. It appears that Kejriwal and his team has got into habit of speaking beyond their working scope just to score political brownie points," Delhi BJP chief Satish Upadhyay said. "The country has a government which has a vast respect for the judiciary, and it consists of senior ministers who have been a part of the judicial system all their life and thus there is no question of any kind of spying on judges under the present government," he said. Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who spoke after Kejriwal at the golden jubilee celebrations of the Delhi High Court earlier in the day, said, "I deny with all authority at command the allegations that phones of judges have been tapped." Panaji: Goa Forward Party today said it will make the formal announcement of the names of candidates for the upcoming state Assembly election in December. "Informally people know who are our candidates. But the formal announcement of their names will be done only in December," party president Prabhakar Timble told PTI today. The newly formed party, mentored by Independent legislator Vijai Sardesai, has been recognised by the Election Commission of India with a coconut as its poll symbol. Timble said alliance with like-minded parties is going to happen and it would not be announced at the last minute. "Alliance will definitely happen. Everyone wants alliance,?but right now they have kept their cards close to the chest," he said. Goa Forward has already expressed its intention to have alliance with the Congress. Timble said his party has a strong base in 18-20 constituencies in the state where they can go ahead on their own if the alliance does not happen. Panaji: The AAP is looking to capitalise on early declaration of its candidates on most of the Assembly seats in poll-bound Goa, when other political parties are still busy keeping their nominees under wraps. AAP has already announced 15 candidates out of 40 constituencies in three different phases with the fourth list expected to be announced this week. "It is naturally an advantage for the party when candidates are known to the voters much in advance. The voters get time to interact with the candidate and know him. There are a lot of questions that are in the minds of voters that they can ask the candidates," AAP Goa spokesman Rupesh Shinkre told PTI. The party organisation had begun door-to-door visit in the state which is now being taken ahead by the candidates in the fray, he said. "Now people know who is their candidate. With the announcement of list in advance, the candidate gets enough time. We have completed 60-70 percent door to door in almost all the constituencies," he said. AAP was the first party to formally launch its campaign in Goa with a mega public rally addressed by party's national convener Arvind Kejriwal in May this year. The list which has been announced till date has two women candidates - architect-turned-politician Royla Fernandes and renowned dance choreographer Cecille Rodrigues. Royla is contesting from politically-sensitive Benaulim constituency in South Goa, while Cecille is in the fray from Taleigao constituency, a fiefdom of former minister Atanasio Monserratte. "When I approached voters as AAP candidate, the first worry they had on their mind was that once voted to power we will withdraw all the schemes," Royla said, adding "we tell people that we will not withdraw the scheme but instead would strengthen them by removing corruption and fortifying them further." She said during door-to-door meetings, the voters usually have one general question "what difference will AAP make for us?" Royla who has been the sarpanch of Benaulim panchayat claims that basic infrastructure is a major issue in this constituency, which hosted the BRICS summit recently. "We convince people that electricity and roads are to be looked after by panchayat but as a legislator we will ensure that there are enough laws and powers for panchayats to do so," she added. Chandigarh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to launch Haryana`s year-long golden jubilee celebrations from Gurugram on Tuesday, said Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar while clarifying that his government was not spending Rs 1,700 crore on the celebrations. Modi will kick-off Haryana`s `Swarna Jayanti` celebrations on Tuesday from Gurugram`s Tau Devi Lal stadium. The Haryana government is expecting over 100,000 people to attend the inaugural ceremony. "We are not spending Rs 1,700 crore on golden jubilee celebrations, I want to clarify. It was wrongly projected that Rs 1,700 crore was being spent on celebrations. This is for various schemes and programmes to be launched for people`s welfare during the entire year," Khattar told media here on Monday. "It (expenditure) is not this way. The amount being spent of the golden jubilee celebrations is much less and different departments will bear that," he claimed. Haryana, which was created on November 1, 1966, completes 50 years on Tuesday. "The Prime Minister will make important announcements on Tuesday at the event," said Khattar, who also launched the "Saksham Haryana` scheme on Monday in which post-graduate, unemployed youth would be given Rs 9,000 honorarium for 100 hours of work per month. "The scheme starts from November 1. Government departments and private sector both will be involved in this. Nearly 1,100 post-graduates are registered in employment exchanges in Haryana," he said. Khattar said that, as per estimates, there were over 30,000 unemployed post-graduate youth in Haryana but most of them were not registered with employment exchanges. "If all of them register, the financial burden on the state would be Rs 324 crore for this scheme," he said. Among other announcements made by Khattar on Monday were an increase in salary of Home Guards, from Rs 300 per day to Rs 572 per day, making it equivalent to police constables. Over 14,000 home guards will benefit from it. Khattar also said that given the large number of ex-servicemen in the state, a new full-fledged department for ex-servicemen would be set up. He said that `Haryana Swarna Jayanti Medal` would be given to all police personnel in the state which they will wear on their uniform. He said that the Gurugram Development Authority (GDA) will start functioning from November 1, and streamline Gurugram`s development. Dharamshala: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh was hospitalised in the wee hours on Monday after he complained of fever and severe chest congestion. Singh was admitted to IG Medical College in Shimla around 1.30 AM where his condition is stated to be stable now, the hospital's Senior Superintendent Dr Ramesh said, adding the chief minister is kept under observation. "All the tests are normal and he is stable. He is being kept under observation," the doctor said. State Governor Acharya Dev Vrat visited the hospital in the morning to inquire about Singh's health. Shimla: Senior BJP leader and Union Minister JP Nadda Monday said Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh should resign on moral grounds since the cases registered against him by the CBI and ED are "blatant". "Investigations are being conducted by the independent agencies and the verdict of the court would be final. But, keeping in view the nature of the cases, the Chief Minister should tender his resignation even before such exigency arises," he said here. Parrying questions regarding his "return" to state politics, he said, "I have been given certain responsibilities. I am discharging those and will continue to do so." On Congress claiming Virbhadra Singh will become the chief minister for the seventh time, he said, "BJP is fully geared to defeat Congress under any circumstances and who will lead the party in the next polls is of little consequence." Expressing concern over delay in implementing projects sanctioned by the Centre, he said, "The state government should complete modalities and pre-conditions, and roll out the projects at the earliest." "The Surface Transport Ministry has sanctioned 61 National Highways. But till now not a single Detailed Project Report has been sent by the state, an essential pre-requisite to have funds released," Nadda claimed. "Similarly, health projects are pending execution due to non-availability of land, delay in selection of sites, forest clearance and other factors. The state government has failed to match the speed with which the centre is pushing the projects," the Union Health Minister alleged. Projects worth Rs 1,000 crore are in the pipeline but the state government is slow in implementing those, he claimed. "New medical colleges, super-speciality centres at IGMC Shimla and Government Medical College at Tanda, Cancer Centre at Shimla, Tertiary Cancer Centre at Mandi, trauma centres, mother and child care centres and several other sanctioned projects are hanging in fire," Nadda claimed. "The Centre is in talks with MCI for expansion of post-graduate (PG) courses in medical sciences and plans to add 15,000 PG seats," he said. The Centre will launch a health insurance scheme for eight crore poor families from April 1 next year to provide health cover of Rs 1 lakh to the head of the family and additional Rs 30,000 for each family member without any cap, he said. Amazon launches new shipping program in China Updated: 2016-10-29 13:18 By Meng Jing(chinadaily.com.cn) Amazon boxes are seen stacked for delivery in the Manhattan borough of New York, January 29, 2016. [Photo/Agencies] Amazon.com Inc announced on Friday the launch of its membership program in China in an attempt to use a tailor-made free cross-border shipping service to compete with local e-commerce rivals, such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. The membership program named Amazon Prime China makes Chinese subscribers the first in the world who can enjoy free cross-border shipping directly from the United States. With an annual subscription fee of 388 yuan ($57.23), the prime package offers unlimited free cross-border shipping on more than four million authentic overseas products and unlimited free shipping with no minimum purchase on more than nine million domestic products. "Launching a unique program designed for our Chinese customers shows our obsession with Chinese customer needs, and demonstrates our long-term commitment to growing our business in China," said Russ Grandinetti, senior vice president of Amazon at the launching event in Beijing. Created in 2005, Amazon Prime has attracted more than 65 million members in the US and acted as an effective catalyst to increase customer royal and boost sales. Industry observers say Amazon Prime China is expected to work the same magic in China especially among the countrys high-end shoppers, who are increasingly seeking for overseas goods to meet their sophisticated taste. Western retailers, including Amazon China, have been facing fierce competition to gain a solid foothold in Chinas crowded e-commerce market as local players such as Alibaba account for more than 90 percent of the share. Since the year 2014, Amazon has shifted its strategy to bring overseas products to China by leveraging its unique advantage of being a multinational e-commerce company with the most selection of overseas brands. Lu Zhenwang, an internet expert and chief executive of Wanqing Consultancy in Shanghai, said that the newly launch Amazon Prime China is expected to help the company boost sales among its existing customers in the country. "As soon as you join the membership, you will want to buy more because of the free shipping policy. And it is also likely to help the company gain new customers," he said. New Delhi: Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday completely rejected Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's claims that there were allegations that phones of judges were being tapped. Reacting to Kejriwal's assertion, the senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said, I deny with all authority at command the allegations that phones of judges have been tapped. Prasad's reaction comes after the Delhi CM and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief said, reports of phone tapping of judges are doing rounds, and if this is true, it is the biggest assault on judiciary. Kejriwal made the startling statement while addressing the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Delhi High Court here. "There are many other ways to gather evidence for wrongdoing, otherwise it will be the biggest assault on the independence of the judiciary," Kejriwal said. "There are opportunities when you get to talk to judges, and during one of those, I heard two judges telling each other not to talk over phone because the phones are being tapped. When I said that this cannot happen, they said from the Supreme Court to the High Court and District Courts, all of the judges' phones are being tapped," said Kejriwal. "I don't know if this is true, but if it is true, then this very dangerous. In such a scenario all the judges can be influenced. Even if a judge has indulged in any wrong doing, even that doesn't justify phone tapping. Other means can be used to gather evidence against them," said Kejriwal, leading to loud murmurs among the audience. Prasad, who spoke after Kejriwal, said, "I deny with all authority at command the allegations that phones of judges have been tapped." He said right from the prime minister to other ministers and the government, all have fought for the independence of judiciary and individual liberty and freedom of media during emergency. "Independence of judiciary is fundamental, impeachable and uncompromising for the government," he said. Kejriwal also referred to the actions of judiciary as well as the executives which may take away the rights of the people. "If any action of the executive snatches the power of the people, if any judicial interpretation of the Constitution takes away power of the people then it is not good for democracy," he said. The Delhi HC's anniversary celebrations were attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Justice of India TS Thakur among others. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday paid tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his birth anniversary and remembered his contribution to India. "I bow to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his birth anniversary. We recall his rich contribution to India," Modi tweeted. "Paid floral tributes to the great Sardar Patel," Modi wrote in another with a picture. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was born on October 31, 1875 in Nadiad, a small village in Gujarat. He was conferred with the highest civilian honour, Bharat Ratna, in 1991 for his services to the nation. Patel was popularly known as the `Iron man` of India. In his 25th Mann Ki Baat address on Diwali, Modi had urged the nation to promote unity and equality. "Tomorrow we are celebrating Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel`s birth anniversary. He worked to bring everyone together, he worked for unity, fought for unity and brought unity amongst people and we all must remember it," Modi said on Sunday. Modi said: "He gave us a united India and to keep it united is our responsibility." Srinagar: Expressing concern over stalemate on the issue of deferment of board examinations, Opposition National Conference leader Omar Abdullah today suggested the PDP-led government to hold talks with the students and not make the matter a "point of prestige". "The state government should talk to the students with an open mind instead of tormenting them. It should desist from making the issue of holding examinations a point of prestige," the NC working president said after meeting various delegations of young students at his residence here. The former chief minister said the students who are in their crucial classes deserve "every bit of our empathy and moral support". "The young students are the worst victims of uncertainty and turmoil as a break in their academic pursuits at this junction has a direct bearing on their careers. Unfortunately, the state government has chosen to browbeat and intimidate the students into complying with their stand on holding the examinations on time despite the loss of almost four months of in-class studies and tutorials (due to the ongoing unrest)," he said. Omar said the current unrest has affected "our children psychologically" and the "government's insensitivity is only worsening their plight". The NC working president said the students have a fair point in questioning the rationality and fairness of the government holding examinations on time when only around 80 school working days could be conducted as opposed to a minimum standard of around 180 days of an academic year. "The students have not been able to complete their prescribed syllabi as both their schools as well as tutorial classes have been shut and suspended for almost four months now. The curriculum covered in 10th and 12th standards forms the basis of the curriculum for professional entrance examinations and hence the government's offer of curtailing the curriculum covered in these examinations makes no sense and will affect their performance in the entrance examinations," Omar said. He alleged while the government is watching as a "mute and helpless spectator" to the burning of schools, their arrogance on the issue of examinations is "baffling if not out rightly ridiculous". "When you cannot protect the public education infrastructure in the state, your misplaced sense of confidence in forcing examinations on the students is absurd. The government cannot absolve itself of the responsibility of safeguarding the public education infrastructure in the state and the safety of our schools, our teachers and our students has to be ensured at all costs," he added. Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Monday took suo-moto cognisance of burning of schools in the valley after separatists allegedly targeted 25 such institutions over the past one month, media reports said. In a series of such attacks, separatists on Monday set on fire another school in Kashmir, inviting public ire. The latest incident took place in Anantnag district. A major portion of the school building was reportedly damaged in the arson attack. The J&K High Court listed the case for next hearing on November 7 and directed the three officials to remain present. The bench observed that the mysterious burning of centres of learning has sent shock waves awakening all to ponder. "Education is the main factor for intellectual excellence and prosperity. Imparting education in the centres of learning has no other viable substitute," it added. "All the three responsible officers present in the court are directed to sit together along with higher authorities and lower officials and to devise modes and methods which will be effective in protecting school institutions," said the bench of Justices Mohammad Yaqoob Mir and Ali Mohammad Magrey. The directions were issued to the Inspector General of Police, the Divisional Commissioner and the Director of School Education of Kashmir. The court also directed the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police to issue necessary instructions to their district level officers including Deputy Commissioners and SPs to take all preventive measures as shall be necessary for saving the school buildings from being burnt and to ensure that no other school building is harmed or destroyed. "Further the mysterious enemies of education shall be unmasked and dealt with iron hand," the court said. The bench lashed out at the state government, saying the "administrative authorities are required to have resort to protective measures but they are still in deep slumber, appear not to have devised any protective policy for protecting school buildings". The court also expressed hope that the "mysterious persons" will stop burning school buildings and "also hope that the citizens will also help in protecting school buildings". Locals have blamed the Hurriyat Conference for the attacks, saying that the managements have been warned against the opening of schools in a Talibani-style diktat. Over the past few weeks, the separatists have burnt down over two dozen schools in the Valley in a desperate bid to keep up their ante. The opening of the schools is an emotive issue for parents as it is linked to the career of their wards. Last Saturday, scores of parents took to the streets in Srinagar to protests against the separatists' call for shutdown. They alleged that they were being forced to follow the instructions of separatists. Reacting to these incidents, HRD MoS Mahendra Nath Pandey said, Few people in J&K are pulling children back into dirt, we have to wipe them. The Valley has been tense for several months now following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists commander Burhan Wani on July 8 in an encounter with the security forces. Slamming the Hurriyat, J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had said that the separatists want to snatch away books from the children and replace them with stones. (With PTI inputs) Srinagar: Normal life remained affected in Kashmir for the 115th consecutive day today due to the separatist-sponsored strike over the recent civilian killings and in support of their demand for right to 'self determination'. Although some shops were open in few areas in the civil lines and in the outskirts of summer capital here, most of them were shut in the rest of the city as well in other parts of Kashmir. There was some movement of private cars and auto-rickshaws in the city and other district headquarters of the Valley, but it was comparatively less as the separatists have not announced any relaxation in the strike later in the day today. Many street vendors, though, had set up their stalls along the TRC Chowk-Batamaloo axis through the Lal Chowk city centre. Even as there were no curbs on the movement of people anywhere in Kashmir, the officials said restrictions on the assembly of people under Section 144 CrPC were in place throughout the Valley. Security forces have been deployed in strength at vulnerable spots and along the main roads as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order as well as to instill a sense of security among the people to carry out their day to day activities without fear. The unrest, which began in the aftermath of killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in an encounter with security forces on July 8 and is about to complete four months, has badly affected, business, tourism and education in Kashmir. While shops, petrol pumps and business establishments remain shut during the day and open only in the evening during the relaxation period announced by the separatists on few days of the week, educational institutions have been completely closed since the unrest began. The separatists, who are spearheading the ongoing agitation in support of their demand for right to self determination, have been issuing weekly protest calendars since Wani's killing. They announce a 14-hour relaxation from 5 pm on some days of the week for people to buy essentials. As many as 85 people, including two cops, have been killed and several thousand others injured in the ongoing unrest in the Valley. Around 5000 security forces personnel have also been injured in the clashes. Thousands of youth, including some top separatist leaders, have been arrested by police over the past three months in an attempt to break the impasse. Over 300 people have been booked under Public Safety Act (PSA). Thiruvananthapuram: State Revenue Minister E Chandrasekheran on Monday announced in the state assembly that Kerala has been declared a drought-hit state as all the 14 districts are facing extreme drought-like situations. The minister made this announcement after leave of the house for an adjournment motion was sought by senior Congress legislator VS Sivakumar. "The south-west monsoon in the state (June to September) has fallen short by 34 per cent and the north-east monsoon (October to December) as on date shows 69 per cent shortfall. And even if the full quota of rains is received in the next two months, it won`t be of help. Hence it has been decided to announce Kerala as a drought-hit state," said Chandrasekheran. He said on account of drought, the state has set out a 26-point charter that each of the 14 District Collectors has to ensure is well met. "Every week the Chief Secretary will link up with all the District Collectors to ensure that all issues are addressed. There would be regular meetings with all the legislators and other people`s representatives that will monitor the steps being taken to address the drought," said the minister. Sivakumar told the assembly that such a situation has not happened in the recent history of the state. The rainfall records show that it has been the worst in the past one decade. "From June to September we should receive around 2,039 mm of rainfall and what we received was just 1,352 mm. Consequent to this shortage, the water level in all the reservoirs has dropped, and the groundwater table has gone down, leading to wells getting dried up," said Sivakumar. Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala welcomed the minister`s decision to declare the state as drought-hit. "On account of this, we will not walk out of the house and ...the state government should now make efforts to get additional assistance from the Centre and to see that its team visits the state early... The state government should lead a delegation to the Centre, as political moves also help," said Chennithala. The opposition leaders also sought that the state government should announced soon a moratorium on all loans taken by farmers, be it for agriculture or others. Bhopal: Eight terrorists of banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) broke out of Bhopal Central Jail after killing a guard. The SIMI members escaped by jail by scaling the prison wall with the help of bed sheets. Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bhoopendra Singh confirmed the incident. Madhya Pradesh Police is on high alert. The state border was sealed following the jail break, security was tightened and a search operation is on to nab the terrorists, the Home Minister said. Singh also accepted that the incident points to a major security lapse. "Eight SIMI activists escaped around 2-3 am by killing a jail security guard," DIG Bhopal Raman Singh told PTI. The SIMI activists also killed a jail security guard and later scaled the jail walls with the help of bed sheets, he said. They killed the guard by slitting his throat with steel plate and glass after overpowering him, the DIG said. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the administration is making all efforts to nab the SIMI terrorists. Acting tough the CM suspended DIG Jail, ADG Jail and two other prison officials. Bhopal: Eight terrorists of the banned outfit Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), who managed to escape from Bhopal Central Jail in the wee hours of Monday, were killed in an encounter on the outskirts of Bhopal. The SIMI men were killed in an operation carried out by Madhya Pradesh police after tracking them down to Malikheda. After getting a tip-off from the locals, the police surrounded them and asked them to surrender. However, the terror suspects didn't pay any heed to the warning and opened fire, following which the security personnel retaliated and gunned down the eight SIMI members. Reports say that the gunfire lasted for 30 minutes. Reports claimed that the terrorists had local support and were provided weapons for self-defence after they managed to flee from the prison. MP Home Minister Bhupendra Singh said the SIMI members were planning a big terror strike. In a major security lapse on the part of jail administration, five out of eight terrorists were locked in the same barrack. IG Bhopal, Yogesh Choudhary confirmed that the SIMI members were killed in a retaliatory fire by police. The names of seven of the SIMI terrorists are: Amzad, Zakir Hussain Sadiq, Mohammad Salik, Mujeeb Shaikh, Mehbood Guddu, Mohammad Kalid Ahmed, Aqeel and Majid. Four among them were notorious criminals involved in dacoity, loot and treason. They had earlier escaped from Khandwa Jail and were later arrested from Odisha, police said. Around 2-3 am, eight accused belonging to SIMI escaped from the jail by making a rope out of bed sheets to climb the wall of Bhopal central jail. During their escape, they killed a jail security guard. Earlier today, the Union Home Ministry sought a report from the Madhya Pradesh government about the jail break. This was the second major jail break by operatives of banned SIMI in three years after the sensational escape by seven members of the group from a jail in Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh in 2013. While in hiding, the SIMI men were allegedly involved in terror activities in several states including Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. SIMI was banned by the government in 2001. Bhopal: Eight terrorists of the banned SIMI group were gunned down early on Monday on the outskirts of Bhopal, hours after they killed a prison guard and escaped a penitentiary here, triggering a massive manhunt across the city. All eight terrorists were cornered on the outskirts of the city, some 15 km from the prison, after several hours of intense search, the police said. A police team had to retaliate when the fugitives opened fire at the officers who had waylaid them on the early hours of Monday. Several policemen were injured in the gunfight. Also Read: Bhopal SIMI encounter: Top jail officials suspended; CM announces NIA probe Four firearms and three sharp weapons were recovered from the terrorists killed in encounter today, state IG Yogesh Choudhary told reporters. As this was a serious issue, we investigated all possible getaways and after receiving info, we confronted the SIMI terrorists, he said. Asked if they received outside help, apparent from the weapons found on them, the officer said, It is a matter of investigation. He added that these people (SIMI terrorists) have been continuously perpetrating serious offences. Meanwhile, the state government has ordered an inquiry by the National Investigation Agency after they seemingly got away without much trouble. Also Read: Bhopal jailbreak: NIA to probe escaping of SIMI terrorists, five jail officials suspended All factors will be taken into consideration during investigation. We have to assess the process as to how they escaped and where did they go after escaping, the IG said. After killing the guard by slitting his throat with a steel plate, the terrorists scaled a high wall with help of bed sheets to make their way out around 2 am. The encounter took place in Malikheda area on the outskirts of Bhopal. The slain terrorists were identified as Amzad, Zakir Hussain Sadiq, Mohd Salik, Mujeeb Shaikh, Mehbood Guddu, Mohammad Kalid Ahmed, Aqeel and Majid. The police were on high alert after their escape. The state borders were sealed while a massive search operation was launched to nab the terrorists. State Home Minister Bhoopendra Singh has admitted to the security lapses at the penitentiary. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has promptly suspended five officials in-charge of the Khandwa jail, including the DIG and ADG, for lapses. Also Read: High alert sounded after Bhopal jailbreak Also Read: BJP attacks opposition for questioning Bhopal shootout He also announced a compensation of Rs 50 lakh to the kin of the dead prison guard. This was the second major jailbreak by SIMI terrorists from the same prison since the 2013 sensational escape by seven members of the group. After the initial reports of the police encounter, some opposition members have questioned its veracity, triggering a row. The initial reports had suggested that the fugitives had no firearms on them. However later in the afternoon, the IG put that story in perspective at a press conference. Courier companies ready for 'Double 11', packages to top 1 billion Updated: 2016-10-31 13:45 (chinadaily.com.cn) A man unloads parcels from a vehicle of a ZTO Express delivery in Beijing, October 27, 2016.[Photo/Agencies] As annual online shopping festival "Double 11" or "Singles' Day" approaches, courier companies are getting ready to go on a spree, Beijing Morning Post reported. Several Chinese express delivery firms have begun their recruitment starting August and September, through campus promotional activities and agencies. They have even called on couriers' family and friends to help. This year is the eighth consecutive year for "Double 11". During the Nov 11 shopping festival last year, Alibaba, the e-commerce giant which accounted for eight percent of China's total retail volume, reported that about 91.22 billion yuan ($14.33 billion) was spent in 24 hours. Created in 2009, the event was originally launched to tempt single people to console themselves with some retail therapy, spurred on by massive discounts from retailers. This year, the event's various figures are expected to set records again. A total of 1.05 billion packages will be delivered during that period, up 35 percent year on year, according to the China Express Association. Courier companies have updated their equipment and data support, but pressure still remains. Several delivery service stations have posted their job advertisements, without saying how many would be needed, Beijing Morning Post said. Most of courier companies have offered a salary of 5,000 to 7,000 yuan, or even 8,000 yuan, per month. Almost 1,000 full-time workers have been hired since August, an official from SF-Express, one of the country's biggest delivery and logistics firms, told the newspaper. The number of part-time workers, including hourly workers and short-term dispatch workers, totaled over 3,000. Previously, the company paid part-time workers according to how long they worked, but now SF-Express would pay them according to how many parcels they have sent, to motivate them, the official added. In order to improve sorting efficiency, SF-Express and YUNDA Express both launched their fully automatic sorting equipment before the "Double 11". SF's fully automatic sorting equipment, located at the Beijing Logistics Park, was launched in August. It can handle 40,000 parcels per hour, almost double the manual work previously. In addition, the degree of accuracy of automatic sorting line can reach nearly 100 percent, up from the 95 percent of manual operation. Bhopal: Eight terrorists of banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), who managed to escape from the Bhopal Central Jail early Monday, were killed in an encounter on the outskirts of Madhya Pradesh's capital. The SIMI activists had escaped from the Central Jail early today morning by killing a security guard and scaling the prison wall with the help of bed sheets. Confirming the development, MP Home Minister Bhupendra Singh said, "All 8 SIMI activists, who escaped from jail, were killed in police encounter at Malikheda near Bhopal." The names of the SIMI terrorists are: Amzad, Zakir Hussain Sadiq, Mohammad Salik, Mujeeb Shaikh, Mehbood Guddu, Mohammad Kalid Ahmed, Aqeel and Majid. Following the jail break, Madhya Pradesh Police was on high alert. The state border was sealed and security was tightened and a search operation is on to nab the terrorists. Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bhoopendra Singh had accepted that the incident pointed to a major security lapse. This is the second major jail break by operatives of banned SIMI in three years after the sensational escape by seven members of the group from a jail in Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh in 2013. Four among them were notorious criminals involved in dacoity, loot and treason. They had earlier escaped from Khandwa Jail and were later arrested from Odisha, police said. Earlier speaking to the media, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the administration is making all efforts to nab the SIMI terrorists. Acting tough the CM suspended DIG Jail, ADG Jail and two other prison officials. DIG Bhopal Raman Singh said, "Eight SIMI activists escaped around 2-3 am by killing a jail security guard." They killed the guard by slitting guard's throat with steel plate and glass after overpowering him, the DIG said. Meanwhile, the Union Home Ministry sought a report from the Madhya Pradesh government about the jail break. Also Read: Four killed SIMI activists learned bomb-making in UP's Bijnor This was the second major jail break by operatives of banned SIMI in three years after the sensational escape by seven members of the group from a jail in Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh in 2013. The Home Ministry also asked the Madhya Pradesh government to send a detailed report about the jail break, whether there was any lapse on the part of the jail administration and the steps taken to check such incidents. Mumbai: Thousands of villagers today bid a tearful adieu to BSF jawan Nitin Subhash Koli, who was killed in ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops in the Macchil sector along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir. Koli was cremated with full military honours at his village Dudhgaon in Sangli district of Western Maharashtra this morning. State ministers Chandrakant Patil and Sadabhau Khot were among those who paid tributes to the martyr. Earlier, his body was taken to his home and later kept at the Karmveer Chowk to enable people pay their last respects. The 28-year-old Koli, who was martyred on October 29, was planning to visit his family in his native village after Diwali. Koli hailed from a farmer family in Dudhgaon village in Miraj tehsil. He is survived by parents Subhash and Suman, younger brother, wife Samapada and two sons - Devraj (4) and Yuvraj (2). He had come home around six months ago and was to come on leave again on November 5. The family was eagerly waiting for him. Before he joined BSF in 2008, Koli worked as a manual labourer to pay for his education till 12th standard and also to financially support the family. Recently, he had helped his brother to buy a van so that he could start a small business, a family member said. Tuticorin: A woman has sought the help of the district administration here to trace her 27-year-old daughter who is married to a Sri Lankan national and residing in Colombo, saying that she has not heard from her since 2015. In a memorandum to the District Collector, Kanaka, hailing from Maniyachi, said her daughter Thangam had married Vigneswaran alias Kannan of Bandaranayaka area in Colombo in April, 2011. The couple was staying in Maniyanchi and had two girl children before they left for Colombo in 2014. Later, her daughter gave birth to a male child. She used to talk to her over phone frequently from Colombo thereafter, Kanaka said. However, since 2015, her daughter had not contacted her, the woman said, requesting the Collector to help in tracing her daughter and grandchildren. Tuticorin: Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan Monday welcomed Congress spokesperson Khushbu's reported statement supporting the common civil code. "Khushbu's statement on common civil code should be welcomed by all," he told reporters here referring to the actress-turned-politician favouring such a code. On the Cauvery water-sharing issue, the Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways said the more than 40-year-old dispute could not be expected to be solved in four months. He claimed that the Congress would be voted out of power in Karnataka in the next polls. Later talking to newsmen in Madurai, he said youngsters in Tiruparankunram, going to bypoll on November 19, should form a team and prevent disbursement of money to voters. Lucknow: Senior Uttar Pradesh Minister Rajendra Chowdhary, a close confidant of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, has likened him to historical Afghan leader Sher Shah Suri, according to media reports on Monday. The Minister, who for the last four years has been found next to Akhilesh at all public events, said that if Sher Shah Suri was the architect of the Grand Trunk Road, Akhilesh would always be remembered for the Agra-Lucknow Expressway. "By ensuring completion of the 302-km-long Expressway in record 22 months, Akhilesh Yadav has scripted a new chapter of development in the history of the state," the Minister told reporters on the sidelines of a 'Diwali Milan Samaroh' in Saifai (Etawah), said the reports appearing in a section of the press. He added that the road would usher in yet unseen economic development and prosperity in the state. Chowdhary is the Political Pensions Minister and is always seen alongside Akhilesh. He was also the official spokesperson of the Samajwadi Party, but was unceremoniously removed after Shivpal Singh Yadav took over as the party's state chief. Chowdhary also said that the Chief Minister is not only concerned about the future of farmers but is equally caring towards the youth. Taking a dig at the statement of the Minister, BJP's state General Secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak said rather than giving names to the Chief Minister, Chowdhary should try to first settle issues within the warring Yadav clan. "Rajendra Chowdhary is trying to paint a rosy picture of the state and trying to portray Akhilesh as a harbinger of development. If so is the case, why does he not try to convince the Yadav family members on this, rather than trying to hoodwink people," the senior BJP leader told IANS. Varanasi: Enraged over the death of a youth in a road accident, a mob here set on fire the car which had collided with the deceased's motorcycle, police said today. Manish Chauhan was killed and another youth injured when their bike collided head-on with a car in Rohania bypass area, they said. "The mob set that car on fire and also indulged in stone pelting," said Senior Superintendent of Police Nitin Tiwari. "Huge police force was rushed to the spot and after using a mild force, the situation was brought under control," the SSP said. "A heavy police force has been deployed in and around the accident spot to prevent any untoward situation," he added. Dhaka: At least 15 Hindu temples in Bangladesh were vandalised and properties worth lakhs were destroyed allegedly over allegations of disrespect shown to Islam on Facebook, triggering panic among the minority community in the Muslim-majority nation. Temples in Brahmanbarhia districts Nasirnagar were vandalised on Sunday; besides over 100 houses of Hindus in the area were also looted. After the mayhem for hours, two temples in adjacent Habiganjs Madhabpur also came under attack, police and witnesses said. At least 200 unnamed people have been sued for allegedly vandalising two temples in Madhabpur of Habiganj district, ANI quoted Bangladesh media as saying. Paramilitary Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) have been deployed in Nasirnagar and Madhabpur Upazila headquarters along with the Rapid Action Battalion, police and Armed Police Battalion, bdnews24.com reported. The districts Deputy Commissioner Rezwanur Rahman and Superintendent of Police Mizanur Rahman inspected the area later in the afternoon. But the leaders of the local Hindu community say the panic that has gripped them is not going away. The attack was carried out in a style followed by the attackers of Buddhist community in Coxs Bazar in 2012 on a similar allegation of disrespect towards Islam through a Facebook post. Locals said Nasirnagar incident started with a Facebook post by one Rasraj Das from Harinberh village under Haripur Union Parishad. Police detained Rasraj on Friday immediately after the allegation of blasphemy had surfaced against him. He was sent to jail following a court order, Mr. Mizanur Rahman said. Protests against Rasrajs post were called under the banner of Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat in Habiganj district headquarters and Nasirnagar. Demonstrations were also announced in Habiganjs Madhabpur. Sydney: Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull defended on Monday a proposal to ban asylum seekers who arrive illegally by boat from ever entering Australia again, rejecting criticism from rights lawyers who say it would breach the UN Refugee Convention. Under Australia`s tough immigration laws, asylum seekers intercepted trying to reach the country by boat are sent for processing at detention camps on Papua New Guinea`s Manus island and the tiny South Pacific island nation of Nauru. Some 1,200 people are currently held in the camps, and Turnbull`s proposal has sparked speculation that the government has reached some deal for them to be resettled in the United States. The legality of forever barring people from entering Australia after they have been resettled in a third country, having been officially recognised as refugees, has been questioned by rights lawyers and refugee support groups. They say it would contravene the UN Refugee Convention, which states that no country will impose penalties on refugees due to their illegal entry or presence. Turnbull, however, defended the proposal he first made on Sunday, and the government is expected to introduce the amendment in parliament next week. "We have taken legal advice and we are satisfied it is within power and consistent with our international obligations," Turnbull told reporters in Yalata, South Australia. Turnbull will have to secure backing from independent senators or the opposition Labor Party for the bill to pass into law. Australia`s policy of indefinite offshore detention has led to strong domestic and international criticism. A resettlement deal could help Turnbull`s approval ratings, which this month fell to the lowest level since he assumed office in September 2015. Pressure on Australia to find a country willing to take some of the 1,200 detainees grew after Papua New Guinea`s Supreme Court ordered the closure of the Manus Island detention centres earlier this year. The United Nations and human rights groups have condemned alleged human rights abuses in the centres. While refugee advocates welcomed moves to resettle detainees, they fear that more families would be divided if it was passed, and questioned its legality on constitutional grounds. "The inherently discriminatory legislation is legally dubious and would likely face a constitutional challenge even if it did pass the parliament," said the Refugee Action Coalition. "Offshore detention has already divided husbands and wives and parents from children, brothers from sisters. Turnbull`s threat of a lifetime ban would mean more divided partners and families." Jakarta: A cargo plane carrying four crew members went missing Monday during a short flight in mountainous eastern Indonesia, authorities said, the latest blow to the country`s beleaguered aviation sector. The Caribou plane lost contact with air traffic control during what was supposed to be a flight of around half an hour in remote Papua province, the transport ministry said. The ministry said in a statement the aircraft, operated by logistics and transport company Alfa Trans and owned by local authorities, set off from the city of Timika at 7:57 am (2257 GMT Sunday) and was headed to Ilaga, a farming community nestled amid mountains. The plane contacted air traffic control in Ilaga at 8:23 am saying that it was due to land in a few minutes but never arrived. Officials say the aircraft sent an emergency signal from an area between two mountain passes. "The plane was being used to transport cargo belonging to Puncak district administration and is owned by the Puncak district government," said transport ministry spokesman Bambang Ervan, referring to the local government. He did not give details about weather in the area at the time. Local media reported the plane`s cargo included construction materials. A search has been launched for the missing aircraft, according to the ministry. All the crew members were Indonesians. The plane is part of the Caribou DHC-4 family of cargo aircraft, which only need a small space for takeoff and landing and are used in rugged terrain. Indonesia has a poor aviation safety record and has suffered a string of major air disasters in recent years. Papua is a problematic place to fly due to its mountainous terrain and frequent poor weather. A passenger plane operated by Indonesian carrier Trigana crashed in the region in bad weather in August last year, killing all 54 passengers and crew aboard. Manila: The Philippines and China have reached a "friendly" understanding allowing Filipinos to fish around a disputed shoal seized by Beijing in 2012, a senior aide to President Rodrigo Duterte said on Monday. Duterte negotiated the understanding during his recent meeting in Beijing with Chinese President Xi Jinping, said Manila`s national security adviser Hermogenes Esperon. As a result, he said, in recent days Filipino fishermen have been able to fish unmolested at Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea while Chinese government vessels have patrolled nearby. "There is no agreement... but our president believes that our fishermen will no longer be harassed because he already brought up this matter" during his visit, Esperon told the media. "The coastguard of China is there, but their navy is gone. And now, our fishermen are no longer being accosted, no longer being forced out, so we can say things are now friendly," he added. Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying acknowledged some changes. "The Chinese side has continuously exercised normal jurisdiction over Huangyan Island, and the situation has not changed," she said in Beijing, referring to the shoal by its Chinese name. "Relations between China and the Philippines have comprehensively improved, and under such a situation, China has already made some proper arrangements with regards to issues of concern to President Duterte." China took control of Scarborough Shoal, 230 kilometres (140 miles) west of the main Philippine island of Luzon, in 2012. It had been driving away Filipino fishermen from the rich fishing ground, sometimes using water cannon. But last weekend Filipino fishermen were once more able to fish at the shoal with the Chinese ships not interfering. Esperon stressed that neither country dropped its claim to the shoal, with China insisting on its "historical rights". China claims most of the South China Sea despite partial counter-claims by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam. Esperon said Duterte`s position was that the Philippines also had "historical rights," and that it was also bolstered by an international tribunal ruling in July that there was no basis for China`s claims to most of the South China Sea. He said the two leaders decided to sidestep the issue to repair frayed ties. "There is no talk on territorial rights, there is no talk on assertion of rights, but they respect our traditional rights," Esperon added. Duterte`s predecessor Benigno Aquino had brought the case before the international tribunal which resulted in the resounding victory over China. Aquino`s strong opposition to China`s territorial claims strained ties with Beijing. However Duterte, who was elected in May, has said he will not press the territorial issue and instead seek more aid and investment from China. "There is no resolution, so why allow yourselves to be in that confrontational position when you can talk about economic relations, trade relations?" said Esperon. "It is win-win for both but this is not to say that we have dropped our claim." Infusing premium quality into stylish four-wheelers Updated: 2016-10-31 13:48 By MENG JING(China Daily) The booth of CAR Inc at an expo in Beijing on Aug 4.[Photo by Lei Kesi/China Daily] The devil (or beauty, if you so prefer) is in the details indeed. The spotless gleaming black limo, the suit-tie-white gloves uniform, well-behaved drivers with loads of experience and full of social gracesChina's chauffeured car services are meticulous about such details. And passengers such as Xiong Yuan appreciate them as they provide the "perfect" ride-hailing experience. Xiong, 28, a Beijing white collar worker, has become a big fan of Shouqi Limousine & Chauffeur, a company that is dedicated to upgrading and standardizing traditional taxi industry in the digital era. "Their service is very professional. If I have something important to do, I often book Shouqi's service because I trust their drivers to show up on time and drive me to my destination without getting lost or taking detours to make more money." With their recent merger, Didi Chuxing and Uber China may have ended their years of cash-burning war for market share in China's ride-hailing segment, but the private transport industry is gearing up for the next phase of hostilities. That will likely see professionalism and quality of service and rides as factors separating winners from also-rans and losers. Which is why, Shouqi's strategy to challenge established players is anchored not in apps that connect any car, any driver and any passenger, but in quality. Launched in September 2015, Shouqi offers exclusive and experienced taxi drivers qualified to provide cab services. Its cars are licensed. Their dimensions and other specifications conform to the strict draft regulations released recently by several major cities in China. Not every player in the market can boast such a record. Zhang Xu, an analyst with the Beijing-based internet consultancy Analysys International, said "The draft regulations of several cities appear to have the potential to sound the death knell for many ride-hailing services". For, proposed rules like who can drive and what types of cars can be used as taxis on ride-hailing apps could disqualify many vehicles now in use as well as most of the current crop of drivers, throwing their firms out of gear. "For now, it seems Shouqi enjoys an advantage in the context of the draft regulations," said Zhang. PangDa Automobile Trade Co Ltd, a major car dealer in China, is going the Shouqi way already. The company announced in mid-October that it has received 5 billion yuan ($73.85 million) in financing to expand into the ride-hailing market via its app Dingding Yueche. PangDa plans to leverage its resources as a dealer to offer cars and drivers as per the stipulations. The draft regulations have levelled the playing field, said Chang Ye, in charge of Dingding Yueche, in a recent interview. Despite the challenge from new players, Didi Chuxing will likely remain firm in its top spot, more so because the recent merger with Uber China has given the combined entity about 90 percent of the ride-hailing market share, said Wang Xiaofeng, analyst with Forrester Research Inc. The numbers too are in Didi's favor. For example, Shouqi owns merely 8,000 vehicles that offer an estimated 15 million rides per year, compared to Didi's 15 million registered drivers who offered 1.43 billion rides in 2015. Sales revenues are not disclosed, and some rides may have been through coupon redemptionsn and offers. "However, it's only natural that with more competition comes more market vitality," Wang of Forrester said. Washington: Democrats kept up their attacks on FBI Director James Comey on Monday, accusing him of a double standard after he revealed his agency`s probe into more material that might relate to presidential candidate Hillary Clinton`s use of a private email server. Clinton's Republican rival, Donald Trump, has seized on Comey`s announcement on Friday to press his longstanding charge that Clinton lacks integrity, hoping he can make an improbable late comeback and win the Nov. 8 election. The Clinton campaign and its supporters furiously attacked Comey for releasing information that raised questions but provided no details so close to the election. Some party leaders said the agency was concealing damaging information about the Trump campaign. The FBI spent a year investigating Clinton`s use of a private email server, instead of government systems, while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. Comey concluded in July that while Clinton and her staff had been "extremely careless" in handling classified information there were no grounds for any charges. But the issue resurfaced unexpectedly on Friday when Comey sent a brief letter to members of Congress to tell them the agency was looking at new emails. He said "we don`t know the significance of this newly discovered collection of emails," which were found during an unrelated probe into the estranged husband of a top Clinton aide. But Trump, a wealthy New York businessman, used the news to charge that Clinton represents a corrupt political system. "When we win on Nov. 8 we are going to Washington D.C. and we are going drain the swamp," he said on Sunday night at a rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico. "Hillary Clinton is not the victim. You, the American people are the victims of this corrupt system." U.S. Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic leader in the Senate, accused Comey on Sunday of "a disturbing double standard for the treatment of sensitive information, with what appears to be a clear intent to aid one political party over another." He said, without providing evidence, that the FBI was keeping explosive information under wraps about ties between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. Democratic Representative Elijah Cummings hammered this accusation on Monday, urging the FBI to release information on Trump and his advisers dealings with Russia. Members of Congress including myself, have asked for months for the FBI to provide us with information as to whether Mr, Trump, Mr Manafort, other associates and the Russian government have any connection with each other, Cummings told CNN, referring to a former senior Trump campaign official, Paul Manafort. An FBI spokeswoman said late on Sunday: When we receive the letter it will be handled through our usual process in responding to members of Congress, referring to Reid`s accusation. The U.S. government has accused Russia of a campaign of cyber attacks targeting the Democratic Party that has led to the release of thousands of illegally obtained emails, revealing the sometimes unflattering inner workings of the party. The Kremlin has denied this. Trump has declined to implicate Russia in any wrongdoing. Democrats have demanded that Comey and the FBI rapidly work to make public what they know about the new email trove. A source familiar with the matter said on Sunday that the FBI had secured a warrant to examine the emails. Daily tracking polls should reflect soon whether the controversy is having an impact on the race. Early voting means that millions of Americans have already cast their ballots. Trump had already narrowed Clinton`s lead in national opinion polls and gone into the lead in a small number of the battleground states where the election is likely to be decided. Democrats have hoped Clinton`s lead in opinion polls could also translate into gains in congressional races on Nov. 8 that could help them take back control of the Senate and the House of Representatives. That hope could dissipate if Clinton is damaged by the news about the email probe. Given that there are several Senate races that are razor thin, the fresh email controversy could have an outsized impact because the margins will be so small, a senior Senate Democratic aide said on Monday. The latest emails were discovered as part of a separate probe of former Democratic U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of Huma Abedin, who is Clinton`s closest aide and confidante, sources close to the FBI investigation have said. The FBI is investigating illicit text messages Weiner is alleged to have sent to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina. The Wall Street Journal reported that federal agents are preparing to spend weeks examining about 650,000 emails contained on Weiner`s laptop for possible links to Clinton`s email use. If Clinton wins the election, the controversy could cast a cloud over her White House transition. Trump said the new email cache could represent a "motherlode" of emails. Cummings said on Monday that the FBIs vague statement on new emails related to the Clinton investigation made it impossible for Clinton to defend herself and basically gave Donald Trump a softball to hit over the fence." On Sunday, Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta and campaign manager Robby Mook questioned the FBI head`s decision to notify Congress of the email review before he even knew whether they were significant or relevant. Comey was appointed FBI director by Democratic President Barack Obama in 2013. Cummings, the Democratic representative, said Comey was under intense pressure and scrutiny from Republicans in Congress after his conclusion in July that Clinton had not violated the law, so he released the new information to stave off any accusations from Republicans that he had withheld information. New York: A United Nation gun store owner has stoked a controversy after he published an advertisement in a daily, that allegedly dubbed Muslims and US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton as 'terrorists' and said, "he won't sell arms to them". Paul Chandler, the owner of Altra Firearms in rural Jackson Center, Pennsylvania, said he turns customers away at his door who are Muslims or those who support Hillary Clinton for United States presidential elections. The 54-year-old business owner has posted a sign on the door of Altra Firearms conveying those rules, and he is currently running an advertisement in a local newspaper declaring, "Please NO Muslims or Hillary Supporters? -- We do not feel safe selling to terrorists!" Chandler told ThinkProgress that, as the owner of a store that brands itself as politically incorrect firearms, he is free to turn Democrats and Muslims away. "She's clearly stated that she doesnt think Americans should have what she calls assault weapons or even guns themselves," he said about Clinton. The Democratic nominee, however, has said she believes in peoples right to keep and bear arms, and will not abolish the Second Amendment. "Its incrementalism. She will take one gun away and then shell take the next gun and the next gun until finally theres no guns. So if youre supporting her, Im not going to arm you," Chandler was quoted as saying. The stance is not new for him as Chandler said he has had a sign on his door, telling supporters of President Barack Obama to go to hell and that he has never been comfortable selling firearms to Muslims. "They want to destroy America, they want to destroy the American way of life," he said. "And so were putting more and more Muslims...here, and I dont feel safe arming them," he added. As for Obama and Clinton supporters, Chandler said they have clearly stated they want to take guns out of the hands of people, and if they dont want guns in the hands of people, Im helping them not to be a hypocrite. The US Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion at public accommodations, although it is unclear if a gun store qualifies. In 2015, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) sued a different store in Florida which declared itself a Muslim Free Zone. Ohio: Hillary Clinton campaigned Monday for a third straight day without close aide Huma Abedin, linked by media to the renewed FBI probe into the former secretary of state`s use of a private email server. The Federal Bureau of Investigation jolted the US presidential race Friday with the announcement it was reviewing a new batch of emails that appeared to be pertinent to the Clinton case. US media reports said the emails were discovered during a separate FBI probe of Abedin`s estranged husband, Anthony Weiner, for allegedly sending explicit online messages to a minor girl. Democratic presidential nominee Clinton, who is locked into a tightening race for the White House against maverick Republican billionaire Donald Trump, spent the weekend without Abedin in the crucial battleground state of Florida, and was again without her on a visit to swing state Ohio on Monday. The last time the elegant 40-year-old Abedin, who has worked for Clinton for 20 years, was seen traveling with Clinton was Friday, when America`s top cop made his dramatic announcement just 11 days before the November 8 election. FBI boss James Comey announced in a letter to lawmakers that his agents are reviewing a newly discovered trove of emails, resurrecting an issue Clinton had hoped was behind her. At the time Clinton and her team, including Abedin, were on the candidate`s campaign plane gliding toward an election rally in Iowa, oblivious to the shockwaves convulsing the political world below. US media say the probe was renewed after agents seized a laptop used by Abedin and Weiner. The disgraced former congressman, who resigned in 2011 after sending explicit online messages, is under FBI investigation over allegations he sent sexual overtures to a 15-year-old girl. In August, Abedin announced their separation in August after The New York Post published messages and photographs that he exchanged with a woman showing him shirtless and in bulging briefs next to their sleeping four-year-old son. Weiner was forced to resign his seat in Congress in 2011 after a similar sexting scandal in which he admitted to exchanging sexually explicit pictures and messages with at least six women. Comey`s announcement thrust back into the spotlight allegations that Clinton put the United States at risk by using a private email server while secretary of state. Comey in July accused Clinton of being "extremely careless" but did not recommend that charges be brought, angering Republicans. Norcia (Italy): The third powerful earthquake to hit Italy in two months spared has human life but struck at the nation's identity, destroying a Benedictine cathedral, a medieval tower and other beloved landmarks that had survived the earlier jolts across a mountainous region of small historic towns. Lost or severely damaged in the shaking were ancient Roman walls, Gothic and Baroque churches and centuries-old paintings crushed beneath tons of brick, sandstone and marble. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi said the nation's "soul is disturbed" by the series of quakes, starting with the deadly Aug 24 event that killed nearly 300 people, two back-to-back temblors on Oct 26, and the biggest of them all, a 6.6-magnitude quake that shook people out of bed yesterday morning. It was the strongest quake to hit Italy in 36 years. There were no reports of fatalities, a fact attributed to the evacuation of sensitive areas and fragile city centers. Nearly 8,000 people have been moved to shelters or hotels following the quakes last week and yesterday, and Italy's Civil Protection agency was expecting that number to reach 11,000 by today morning. Many who stayed behind were sleeping in campers or other vehicles, out of harm's way. Renzi vowed to rebuild houses, churches and business, saying, "a piece of Italian identity is at stake at this moment." "Feeling the earth collapse beneath your feet is not a metaphorical expression but is what happened this morning, and half of Italy felt this," Renzi said. The quake struck another painful blow to the rich artistic heritage of villages that dot the Apennine Mountains. The worst damage was reported in Norcia, a town in Umbria closest to the epicenter. Two churches were destroyed the 14th century Basilica of St Benedict, built on the traditional birthplace of St Benedict, founder of the Benedictine monastic order; and the Cathedral of St Mary Argentea, known for its 15th century frescoes. Only the cracked facades were still standing, with most of the structures disintegrating into piles of rubble and dust. Television images showed nuns rushing into the main piazza as the bell tower appeared on the verge of collapse. Later, nuns and monks knelt in prayer in the main piazza. A firefighter appealed to a priest to help keep residents calm in an effort to prevent them from looking for loved ones. When the quake stuck, nuns from the Saint Mary of Peace monastery in Norcia were praying and singing hymns. The shaking caused their building to collapse and badly damaged their sleeping quarters. Later, firefighters escorted them back inside to retrieve holy books. Then an aftershock hit. "But we had courage, because we were in our house and the Lord protects us," one nun told The Associated Press. Large sections of Norcia's ancient Roman city walls which suffered damage and cracks in the previous quakes crumbled, along with towers. Beirut: A rebel assault to break the siege of Syria`s Aleppo slowed Monday amid fierce resistance from regime forces, as the UN said it was "appalled" by opposition fire on civilians. Rebels launched a major assault on Friday, backed by car bombs and salvos of rockets, to break through government lines and reach the 250,000 people besieged in the city`s east. Aleppo has been hit by some of the worst violence in Syria`s five-year conflict, turning the once-bustling economic hub into a divided and bombed-out symbol of the brutal war. Since Friday, opposition factions allied with jihadists have amassed on Aleppo`s western outskirts in a bid to end the regime`s three-month encirclement of the city`s eastern districts. While they scored an initial advance, the offensive has since slowed, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor. "Since Sunday, the regime has been taking the initiative and the clashes are less intense," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said on Monday. "The only thing that has been accomplished is partial control over Dahiyet al-Assad," a neighbourhood on Aleppo`s western outskirts that rebels entered on Friday, he said. Regime and Russian air strikes were hitting the battlefronts on the city`s edges, but with less intensity than in previous days. "The momentum of the rebel offensive slowed after failing to take control of the `3000` apartment block and the military complex," a pro-regime military source said, referring to two built-up areas southwest of Aleppo. In a new toll on Monday, the Observatory said a total of 61 regime fighters and allied militiamen were killed in the assault, as well as 72 Syrian rebels. Heavy rebel rocket fire since Friday has killed 48 civilians, including 17 children, the monitor said. According to Syrian state news agency SANA, three civilians were killed in rebel fire on Aleppo Monday. UN peace envoy Staffan de Mistura said the high civilian toll raised deep concern. In a statement on Sunday, his office said he was "appalled and shocked by the high number of rockets" fired by rebels. "Those who argue that this is meant to relieve the siege of eastern Aleppo should be reminded that nothing justifies the use of disproportionate and indiscriminate weapons, including heavy ones, on civilian areas and it could amount to war crimes," he said. De Mistura said "civilians of both sides of Aleppo have suffered enough due to futile but lethal attempts of subduing the city." Aleppo`s front line runs through the heart of the city, dividing rebels in the east from government forces in the west. Rebel groups have pledged to push east from Dahiyet al-Assad to Hamdaniyeh, a regime-controlled neighbourhood directly adjacent to the besieged eastern districts. Sarab Abu Abdo, a rebel commander in the Army of Conquest alliance, said fighting was "ongoing with light weapons" on Monday. "We seized three blocks of the 3000 apartment complex, but the regime still controls most of it," Abu Abdo told AFP. He said regime forces had tried twice to overrun Minyan, a village west of Aleppo captured by rebels on Saturday, but failed. An AFP correspondent saw about a dozen civilians, including women and children, fleeing Dahiyet al-Assad on Sunday. They brought belongings stuffed into plastic bags, hoisting them on top of their heads or dragging them along the dusty road. Syria`s conflict broke out in March 2011 with widespread protests calling for the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad. But it has since evolved into a complex, multi-front war pitting regime forces, rebels, Kurds, and jihadists against each other. In Daraa, the southern province where demonstrations against Assad first erupted, a massive regime ambush left at least 34 rebels and allied jihadists dead. The Observatory said the attack took place late Sunday night as the opposition fighters were preparing for a an attack on nearby government positions. Mosul: Iraq launched an offensive to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group two weeks ago. Here is what we know so far about the country`s biggest military operation in years: Iraq`s Counter-Terrorism Service and Rapid Response Division -- two of its most elite special forces units, are fighting in the Mosul area, as are the Army, federal and local police, Kurdish regional peshmerga and pro-government paramilitary forces. The Hashed al-Shaabi -- an umbrella organisation for pro-government paramilitary forces that is dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias but also includes Sunni tribesmen -- largely remained on the sidelines in the early days of the operation, but has now also entered the fight. The Mosul operation opened with attacks from the north, east and south, but ground forces have yet to deploy on the western approach to the city -- which is exposed to IS-held areas between it and Syria. The Hashed al-Shaabi wants to change that, aiming to retake the town of Tal Afar west of Mosul and cut jihadist supply lines to Syria, but they are still fighting in areas south or southwest of the city for now. With brutality, as they have often done before. The United Nations said it has received credible reports that IS executed more than 250 people in the Mosul area over two days last week, and has also seized tens of thousands of people for use as human shields. The jihadists have repeatedly targeted attacking Iraqi troops with suicide car bombs, as well as employed artillery and small arms fire. Outside of the Mosul area, IS has launched several diversionary attacks, including one in the Kurdish-held city of Kirkuk that left dozens dead. The jihadists also struck in Rutba in western Iraq, and the Sinjar area in the country`s north. There have been conflicting reports of IS movements during the battle, pointing to both withdrawals to neighbouring Syria and the deployment of reinforcements to Iraq. The United States says the battle has taken a heavy toll on IS forces, with up to 900 killed in the first week and a half of the operation. As Iraqi forces approach, thousands of civilians have been fleeing IS-held areas to escape both jihadist rule and impending fighting. The International Organization for Migration said Monday that 18,258 people have been displaced since the beginning of the operation, but that figure is expected to increase dramatically as Iraqi forces close in on Mosul. According to the UN, up to one million people could be displaced by the battle for the city -- a major problem given that existing, under-construction and planned camps can only house about half that number. Displacement is especially difficult for rural farming communities, whose wealth lies in fields and livestock that they cannot take to camps. The situation for displaced Iraqis will get even more difficult as winter rains and colder weather set in. Ankara: A Turkish court has ordered the detention of the two mayors of Diyarbakir, the largest city in the predominantly Kurdish southeast of the country, accusing them of "terrorist" activities linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers` Party (PKK). Gultan Kisanak and Firat Anli, jointly elected in 2014, were Sunday accused of "belonging to an armed terrorist organisation" and providing "logistical support to an armed terrorist organisation", according to a statement by the court in Diyarbakir. Their detention comes five days after they were taken into police custody Tuesday evening, which sparked an outbreak of violence in the southeast. Ayla Akat Ata, a former lawmaker from the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), which Kisanak and Anli belong to, was also detained Sunday night. The moves come at a tense time, with multiple arrests and suspensions of local officials accused of links to the PKK and the closure of a dozen pro-Kurdish media ordered by official decree Saturday night. Three policemen were seriously wounded Sunday night in a bomb attack against the offices of the ruling AKP party in Mardin province, which neighbours Diyarbakir, according to the Dogan news agency, which attributed the attack to the PKK. Several hundred people held demonstrations Sunday to demand the release of the mayors in Diyarbakir and in Istanbul, where police used tear gas to disperse the protesters, an AFP journalist said. Speaking to about 500 people gathered near the town hall in Diyarbakir on Sunday, Selahattin Demirtas, co-chairman of the pro-Kurdish People`s Democratic Party (HDP), accused the authorities of holding the mayors "hostage". "All those who do not say `Erdogan is our sultan` are declared `terrorists`," said Demirtas, calling on "democratic forces" to mobilise. "We will not retreat, whatever the cost," he added. Erdogan accuses the HDP and BDP of being linked to the PKK, which is listed as a terror group by Ankara, the European Union and the United States. In September, 24 mayors in the southeast suspected of links to the PKK were suspended and replaced with officials close to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) co-founded by Erdogan, a move that triggered protests in several cities in the region. In the same month, the government suspended 11,500 teachers suspected of links to the PKK. Southeast Turkey has seen near daily attacks and clashes between the PKK and security forces since a fragile ceasefire collapsed in July last year. More than 40,000 people have been killed since the PKK took up arms in 1984 with the aim of creating an independent Kurdish state. The group has since scaled back its demands to greater autonomy for the Kurdish minority, who make up a fifth of the population and form a majority in the southeast. A soldier was killed on Sunday by members of the PKK, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported. Not yet profitable, JD to spend on logistics Updated: 2016-10-31 08:39 (Agencies) JD's booth at an expo in Russia where Chinese cross-border e-commerce firms impressed visitors. [Photo by Dai Tianfang/China Daily] JD.com Inc is going to keep investing outside of its main e-commerce operations in order to build its business and deliver long-term profitability, Chief Executive Officer Richard Liu said, asking shareholders to be patient with the strategy. "We want all of our shareholders to understand: JD isn't a company chasing a one-to-two, or two-to-three-year goal," Liu said in an interview in Beijing. "What we pay attention to is our profits after 10 to 20 years." JD.com is Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's biggest competitor in China's online shopping market, which is on track to show almost $700 billion in spending this year, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. Unlike Alibaba, the Beijing-based company has invested heavily in its own fixed assets such as warehouses and delivery trucks to ensure good service, and facilitate the buying and selling of everything from electrical goods to boxes of kiwi fruit. JD.com's logistics network has also helped win more users through speedy shipping, and the company is competing with Alibaba to sell consumer goods, electronics and home appliances. Liu pointed to stepped-up investments in logistics automation as well as financial and technology services as areas that will ensure success for China's second-largest online retailer for the coming decades. E-commerce is already contributing substantial cash flow, Liu said. JD.com is on track to handle 14 percent of China's total 2016 e-commerce spending, compared with Alibaba's 78 percent, according to JP Morgan. The bank's analysts, led by Alex Yao, said in August that JD.com's gross-margin improvement was positive, but had a cautious view of its operating expenses. "The investment for growth could delay JD's path to profitability," Yao said, pointing to rising expenses and competitive pressure from Alibaba. On Oct 20, the company announced new initiatives in its partnership with Wal-Mart Stores Inc, including adding a Sam's Club to its website and two-hour delivery in select cities. JD.Com is also pouring large amounts of capital into new ventures, including an expansion into Southeast Asia via Indonesia, new financial services such as online loans and cloud-computing products. Liu's strategy is to emulate Amazon.com Inc by investing early profits back into new and existing businesses to grow scale and market share, according to Mitchell Kim, an analyst at Kim Eng Securities. "The asset-heavy model will probably not generate profit for the foreseeable future," Mitchell Kim said. "If you look at the margin difference of Alibaba versus JD, JD just does not have the profitability and cash-flow to invest in all these other new areas whereas Alibaba does." T he key phrase that is important here is, " " See the Latin original just below. for full original of V:8:I see here The key word in that key phrase is "genti" which can be "of the people" or "of the nation." It is a declined form of the word gens meaning people or nation. Since Tacitus calls the country Judea and since the whole text, the whole context, furthermore, is about the Jewish revolt in Judea, we see that the "people" or gens (genti) in the phrase means the Jewish people or nation. for full original of V:8:I see here Tacitus, V, 8:1, in Menahem Stern, (Jerusalem: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Vol. II, No. 281,1980), 21,28. The Latin reads: . The term refers to the people of Judea, the Jews, mentioned in the first part of the sentence. The European and Arab countries that denied Jewish history in Israel demonstrated hostility to history in the notorious UNESCO vote that presented Jerusalem as an Arab-Muslim city. In this case, we are dealing with facts continuously known in both the Arab-Muslim and Western historical traditions. Those who deny the Jewish identity of the city of Jerusalem are inventing a fake history apparently required for political/diplomatic purposes. But a lie. Now Western countries like France, Italy, Belgium, Portugal and Spain have long traditions of historical scholarship, which includes knowledge about the Land of Israel with which these countries have been in contact since the time when all of these countries plus the Land of Israel itself were part of the Roman Empire.Since the study of the Latin language has long been part of higher education in those lands and they take pride in their scholars --who exemplify and demonstrate their higher civilization-- there is no excuse for the governments and foreign ministries of these lands not to know the real history as related in Latin [and Greek] ancient books. Even an abstention from voting against the lying resolution proposed in UNESCO bodies by Arab states on Jerusalem is shameful. Yes, it is shameful to let a historical lie go unopposed. To be sure, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi of Italy regretted his foreign ministry's vote which he may have been unaware of.I do not mean that only ancient Latin or Greek writings are authoritative on the history of ancient Israel. Far from it. Jewish works in Hebrew and Aramaic are important too (as well as writings by Jews in Latin and Greek). But let us approach it this way. The bigot, the Judeophobic ignoramus, including the academic variety, will say that he cannot accept Jewish accounts of Jewish history because Jewish historians are "biased". Parenthetically, the rejection of Jewish historians represents bias too. In this case, challenge this bigot or ignoramus --whichever label you like-- to accept accounts by non-Jews in Latin, Greek and other languages. The Roman historian Tacitus supplied an account of the Roman-Jewish war from 66 CE to 73 CE in his. The Romans took Jerusalem in the summer of the year 70 CE and destroyed the Jewish Temple at the same time. The Roman general Titus Caesar won the war, however, not only with Roman legions but with auxiliary forces including a "strong contingent of Arabs" [various translations vary. See Tacitus'V:1:2 ]. I quoted the Latin original and various translations years ago on this blog . Now I will quote what he wrote farther on in his book which is highly explicit in refuting the UNESCO lies:V:8:1 -- The greater part of Judea [note that Tacitus calls the country] is divided up into villages. They also have cities.So Tacitus and Romans generally recognized Jerusalem as Rivka Fishman wrote a scholarly article about this recognition in Greek and Latin literature for the Jewish Political Studies Review.Now here is the Latin original of the quote from Tacitus above:V:8:1 -- Magna pars Iudaeae uicis dispergitur; habent et oppida;Full disclosure: While I write these lines I am translating from an Italian translation since I do not have an English translation available. The study of Latin is still important in Italy and the Italian translations from ancient Latin texts are fully as reliable as the English and American translations of those works. Here is my source for the Latin and Italian texts: Tacito,a cura di Francesco Nenci. Here is his Italian translation:V:8:1 -- Gran parte della Giudea e' suddivisa in villaggi; hanno anche citta'; la capitale di quel popolo e' Gerusalemme. [One of the reasons that this line from Tacitus is not more widely known in the English-speaking world may be that some translators into English of Tacitus'have chosen not to translate the Latin wordinto English, for whatever reason.- - - - - - - - - - - -UPDATINGS/ADDITIONS AS OF 31 October 2016Here is one of many good commentaries on the UNESCO disgrace -- [ here Here is a commentary by Herbert London -- here Rivka Fishman on the relevant line:HistoriaeGreek and Latin Authors on Jews and JudaismHierosolyma genti caputgens" [ here Tablet online mag [ here ] on Arab accusation that Israel is trying to destroy the al-Aqsa Mosque, built on the Temple Mount and effectively usurping it.Theran a good editorial on the issue of the shameful UNESCO vote [ here Labels: Arab Conquest, Israel, Jewish history, UNESCO Robots at center of China's big strategy to leapfrog its rivals Updated: 2016-10-31 11:02 (China Daily) Visitors watch a robot perform calligraphy at a robot exposition in Beijing. [Photo by Wang Zhuangfei/China Daily] The Canbot can say its name, respond to voice commands and "dance" as it plays Michael Jackson's song Billie Jean. Other Chinese robots on display at the World Robot Conference can play badminton, sand cellphone cases and sort computer chips. China is showcasing its burgeoning robot industry at the five-day exhibition in Beijing, part of a national effort to promote the use of more advanced technologies in Chinese factories and to create high-end products that redefine the meaning of "Made in China." Apart from the so-called cool factor, China's sweeping plans to upgrade its factories and production lines depend on building and better using advanced robots. Automation is crucial for industries facing rising labor costs and slowing growth in the work force thanks to the "one-child" policy era and aging of the population. Analysts say China will have to make big strides to leap ahead of Germany, Japan and other nations whose robots are generations ahead. Infinities International Group, based in east China's Shandong, advertises its Canbot U-Partner as a service robot able to be programed to run errands in shopping malls, restaurants and banks. However it's modeled on the "Pepper" robot made by Japan's SoftBank. Nearby at the conference, Peng Zhihui and Luo Binyi stood with "Ares"a human-sized robot they designed which features exposed metal arms and hands and was produced with a wide range of uses in mind, from military to performing basic tasks at home. Peng and Luo, both 24, developed the mannequin-like "Ares" while attending college in southwestern China's Sichuan province. A Shanghai investment company pitched in some funding. "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. Thousands of factories in south China's industrial centers which long were manned by low-cost migrant workers, are now turning to robots. China has become the world's top consumer of industrial robots and will soon have the most commercial robots in operation of any country. Foxconn, the Taiwan company that assembles Apple's iPhones in the Chinese mainland, has installed 40,000 robots in its factories. China made robotics a focal point of its recent "Made in China 2025" plan and has set national goals of producing 100,000 industrial robots a year and having 150 robots in operation for every 10,000 employees by 2020, a figure known as robot density. Currently, China ranks 28th in the world for robot density, behind Portugal and Indonesia. Chinese suppliers sold about 20,000 robots last year to local companies. "There has never been such a dynamic rise in such a short period of time in any other market," the International Federation of Robotics said in an analysis of China's robot industry published earlier this year. Steve Wyatt, head of sales and marketing for Switzerland-based ABB Robotics, said his company employs more than 1,600 people in China and has seen its sales in China grow by a factor of 50. But the country remains behind in terms of the complexity of tasks Chinese-made robots can handle, Wyatt said. Chinese appliance maker Midea Group recently announced it was purchasing almost all of German industrial robot manufacturer Kuka. Wing Chu, a senior economist at the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, said the Chinese mainland would continue to seek foreign expertise to advance in robotics as part of a broader effort to transform its economy. ASSOCIATED PRESS Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney leaves 10 Downing Street in central London on October 31, 2016 Bank of England governor Mark Carney put an end to speculation over his future Monday by announcing he would extend his contract for one year to 2019 to help secure an "orderly transition" to Brexit. The Canadian will not take up his option to leave in 2018, but at the same time has declined to serve the full eight-year term that would have seen him stay on at the British central bank until 2021. "I would be honoured to extend my time of service as governor for an additional year to the end of June 2019," he wrote in a letter to finance minister Philip Hammond. "By taking my term in office beyond the expected period of the Article 50 process, this should help contribute to securing an orderly transition to the UK's new relationship with Europe." Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to trigger Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty by the end of March, starting a two-year exit process that would see Britain leave the European Union by early 2019. Carney has been strongly criticised by members of May's Conservative party over his warnings about the impact of Brexit before the June referendum, while there was speculation about tensions with the government over policy. In his reply to the governor's letter, Hammond said he was "very pleased" with Carney's decision to stay until 2019. "This will enable you to continue your highly effective leadership of the bank through a critical period for the British economy as we negotiate our exit from the European Union," Hammond wrote. "I am grateful for your contribution to both monetary and financial stability to date, and I look forward to your continuing contribution in the future." - 'Much needed clarification' - Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the House of Commons Treasury committee, welcomed the "much needed clarification", saying: "The less uncertainty the better." However, he said it went against the agreed timetable of eight years, adding: "The decision requires a good deal of examination and explanation." Story continues Carney began his tenure in 2013, stressing his intention to serve only five years of an eight-year term for personal reasons, meaning he would step down in 2018. But in late 2015, he refused to rule out staying for the full eight years in the run-up to the Brexit referendum. Amid intense speculation in the media over the weekend, May offered her full support on Monday morning. Her spokeswoman said Carney was "absolutely" the right person for the job. After the announcement, a spokesman said: "The prime minister welcomes the governor's decision to stay on beyond his initial five-year term. This is good news for the UK." The Sunday Times, citing senior figures who had worked closely with the governor, reported that Carney was "disillusioned" with the government and criticism from sections of May's party. The Telegraph welcomed Carney's decision to stay until 2019 as bringing much-needed stability. "The announcement... means such stability will endure through one of the most important periods in this country?s economic history," the newspaper wrote. Under Carney's leadership, the bank had warned repeatedly over the potential impact of Britain's possible departure from the European Union. The central bank had argued in July that Britain could fall into recession as businesses delay investment decisions because of the shock June 23 vote to exit the EU. May also stoked speculation in October at the Conservative party's annual conference, when she argued the bank's ultra-loose monetary policy under Carney had hurt the poor and helped the rich. Last week Carney said any decision on the length of his term would be "entirely personal", saying "no one should read anything into that decision about government policy". He has previously stated his desire to return to Canada for the education of his four daughters. Jose Manuel Barroso's appointment to the role of non-executive chairman and advisor at Goldman Sachs has caused a furore in the EU Former European Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso did not breach EU ethics rules but he may have been unwise to take a controversial top job at US investment bank Goldman Sachs after leaving office, an EU panel said Monday. "On the basis of the information provided ... there are not sufficient grounds to establish a violation of the duty of integrity and discretion" in Barroso working for Goldman Sachs, the EU's Ad Hoc Ethical Committee said in a statement. Barroso, however, had also "not shown the considerate judgement one may expect from someone having held the high office he occupied for so many years," it said. Barroso was head of the European Commission, the EU's powerful executive arm, from 2004 until 2014, emerging as a high-profile public figure with contacts worldwide. Stepping down, he waited the compulsory 18 months before going to work for Goldman Sachs which is widely blamed in Brussels for its role in the 2008 global crash and eurozone debt crisis. After the panel ruling, a Commission spokesman said: "We will now examine the panel ruling closely before taking any decision on further, appropriate steps." The Commission said at the time Barroso had satisfied the "cooling-off" period but the uproar continued until European Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly asked current president Jean-Claude Juncker to scrutinise the appointment further. Juncker has been badly embarrassed by the criticism of Barroso and the Commission's apparent initial willingness to accept his move to Goldman Sachs, but he insisted he opposed it all along. "What did I say? I repeat: 'No problem for him to take a job in a private bank, but not that one," Juncker said last month. He said he made the remarks "because Goldman Sachs was one of these outfits which contributed, wittingly or unwittingly, to the emergence of this enormous financial and economic crisis." Juncker also said he considered Barroso to be an "honest guy" and a "friend" but that he would no longer be received at the Commission as a former head, being treated henceforth as a simple lobbyist. Story continues Barroso insisted he has done nothing wrong and only last month hit back at his critics. "Why don't I have the right to work where I want, if it's a legal entity? It's not a drug cartel," said Barroso, who was also Portuguese prime minister. When he was hired in July, Goldman Sachs said Barroso's job had "nothing to do with the outcome of the Brexit vote," the shock June British decision to quit the EU. At the time, the Commission said Barroso did not have to inform Juncker about the job because he had been through the cooling-off period and it was safe to assume he no longer had access to privileged information or influence. But it added he would still be bound by EU rules of professional secrecy. Bank of England governor Mark Carney began his tenure in 2013, stressing his intention to serve only five years of an eight-year term for personal reasons British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday threw her weight behind Bank of England governor Mark Carney, who faces intense speculation over his future. Carney began his tenure in 2013, stressing his intention to serve only five years of an eight-year term for personal reasons, meaning he would step down in 2018. But in late 2015, he refused to rule out staying for the full eight years in the run-up to the Brexit referendum in June this year. May's intervention came as British media was divided over Carney's fate -- with competing weekend claims over whether he was set to announce his departure amid tensions following Britain's vote in favour of exiting the European Union. "The prime minister has been clear in her support for the governor, the work he is doing for the country," May's official spokeswoman told reporters. "It's clearly a decision for him but the prime minister would certainly be supportive of him going on beyond his five years." The Sunday Times, citing senior figures who had worked closely with the governor, reported that he was "disillusioned" with May's Conservative government and criticism over his stance since the Brexit vote on June 23. The Financial Times, however, said he was "ready" to serve a full eight-year term, reporting that Carney had told friends he was readying a statement to end what it called "damaging" speculation. "The prime minister has always had a good working relationship with the governor of the Bank of England and intends to continue that," added May's spokeswoman. "She recognises the work that he's been doing for the country and supports that, while recognising it's also a decision for him. "She's fully supportive of the work that he has done as is doing for the country." A Bank of England spokesman told AFP on Monday that "nothing has changed", adding Carney's decision over whether to stay will be made public by the end of the year. Under Carney's leadership, the BoE had warned repeatedly over the potential impact of Britain's potential departure from the European Union. The central bank had argued in July that Britain could fall into recession as businesses delay investment decisions because of the shock June 23 referendum vote to exit the EU. Jose Manuel Barroso's appointment to the role of non-executive chairman and advisor at Goldman Sachs has caused a furore in the EU Former European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso did not breach EU ethics rules but he was unwise to take a controversial job at US investment bank Goldman Sachs after leaving office, an EU panel said Monday. Barroso headed the Commission, the EU's powerful executive arm, from 2004 until 2014, emerging as a high-profile public figure with political and business connections worldwide which critics say he could use unfairly to Goldman's advantage. "On the basis of the information provided ... there are not sufficient grounds to establish a violation of the duty of integrity and discretion" in Barroso working for Goldman Sachs, the EU's Ad Hoc Ethical Committee said in a statement. Barroso, however, had also "not shown the considerate judgement one may expect from someone having held the high office he occupied for so many years," it said. A Commission spokesman said: "We will now examine the panel ruling closely before taking any decision on further, appropriate steps." Stepping down, former Portuguese prime minister Barroso waited the compulsory 18 months before in July joining Goldman Sachs, widely blamed in Brussels for its role in the 2008 global crash and eurozone debt crisis. The Commission said at the time Barroso had satisfied the "cooling-off" period but the uproar continued until European Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly asked current president Jean-Claude Juncker to scrutinise the appointment further. In a separate statement Monday, O'Reilly said she might consider another inquiry of her own after noting several shortcomings in the ad hoc committee's work. She said the committee had recognised that Barroso had caused "reputational damage" to the EU but then decided he was still not in breach of its code of the conduct. It also appeared to examine only the letters exchanged between Juncker and Barroso and "there is no evidence, at least in the opinion, of any other relevant records being requested, received, or any interviews with relevant people undertaken." Story continues Combined with continued concern over Barroso's new job, "the Ombudsman will now reflect on the next steps -? including a possible inquiry - she will take in relation to this important issue," O'Reilly said. - Juncker badly embarrassed - Juncker has been badly embarrassed by the criticism of Barroso and the Commission's apparent initial willingness to accept his move to Goldman Sachs, but he has insisted he opposed it all along. "What did I say? I repeat: 'No problem for him to take a job in a private bank -- but not that one," Juncker said last month. He said he made the remarks "because Goldman Sachs was one of these outfits which contributed, wittingly or unwittingly, to the emergence of this enormous financial and economic crisis." Juncker also said he considered Barroso to be an "honest guy" and a "friend" but that he would no longer be received at the Commission with the courtesies due a former head but treated instead as a simple lobbyist. Barroso says he has done nothing wrong and last month hit angrily back at his critics. "Why don't I have the right to work where I want, if it's a legal entity? It's not a drug cartel," said Barroso. When he was hired, Goldman Sachs said his job had "nothing to do with the outcome of the Brexit vote," the shock June British decision to quit the EU. At the time, the Commission said Barroso did not have to inform Juncker about the job because he had been through the cooling-off period and it was safe to assume he no longer had access to privileged information or influence. It added he would still be bound by EU rules of professional secrecy. Making it in the City of London, Chinese-style Updated: 2016-10-31 18:13 By Angus McNeice in London(China Daily UK) Betty Liu, 31, a Beijing-born financial professional. [Photo/provided to chinadaily.com.cn] Britain's financial sector is replete with some of the country's most ambitious professionals, and succeeding within it is a tough task for employees from any background. Chinese people, in particular, seem to have the deck stacked against them, hailing from a vastly different business culture and education system, and often with a less developed English capability than their homegrown rivals. But those Chinese workers who survive can go on to thrive as conduits between their employers and the world's second-largest economy, according to Betty Liu, 31. Liu moved to the UK from Beijing in 2006, with a bachelor's degree in accounting and sketchy English. A decade later, she has worked at major banks, equity firms, and hedge funds in London, is the owner of a business, and will be flying to China next month as the right-hand-woman of a hedge fund manager who is looking to crack the Chinese market. "I had so many difficult moments, but I was able to learn from my mistakes and adapt to my new environment," Liu said. Those difficult times included the financial crisis, redundancies and overcoming a language barrier that almost led to her losing her job. "My biggest weakness was language," she said. "The majority of students in my course at St Andrews were actually Chinese because finance is so popular among us, and I barely improved my English at university." Liu graduated with exceptional grades and a master's degree in finance and got her first job through a recruiter. She was able to paper over the cracks in her language skills during an interview with an equity firm because she was able to practice her answers in advance. However, she was soon rumbled. "My boss noticed my English was poor, listening to me talking to clients on the phone. She said, I'm sorry, I have to extend your probation period from three to six months," Liu said. "So, I worked even harder. She gave me a second chance and I became a permanent employee." Then, having just found her feet, the credit crunch hit, crippling the firm and leaving Liu jobless. "It was definitely the toughest period of my life," she said. "I remember walking across London Bridge thinking, what should I do? Should I leave this country? Most of my Chinese friends had all left because they couldn't get a job or a visa. But I just had to give it another go." Liu says her work ethic an attribute she says is distinctly Chinese is what saved her. She enrolled on a two-year MBA course at LSE to gain experience and the mention of a big-name university on her CV. And she sat five Association of Chartered Certified Accountants papers in one year. Eventually, she landed a job at the Bank of New York's offices in London. Liu was soon responsible for a small team, training new staff and was the winner of the company's BNY Mellon Aspire Award. When, after 18 months, her department was relocated to India, Liu left the company and joined a hedge fund in London. She also started her own accountancy firm that specializes in serving Chinese clients in the UK. By this year, she had built up a strong enough client-base to be able to work for herself full-time. And where it was once a hindrance, Liu now uses her identity as leverage. "I maintain a very close relationship with my hedge fund boss, and now he wants to enter the Chinese financial market next month we fly to China, and then who knows?" After a rash of UFO sightings across France in 1954, Lucien Jeune, mayor of the small southeastern village of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, issued the following law: Article 1. The overflight, the landing and the takeoff of aircraft known as flying saucers or flying cigars, whatever their nationality is, are prohibited on the territory of the community. Article 2. Any aircraft, known as flying saucer or flying cigar, which should land on the territory of the community will be immediately held in custody. Article 3. The forest officer and the city policeman are in charge, each one in what relates to him, of the execution of this decree. Jeune's son Elie says the law was mostly a publicity stunt. Still, 62 years later, current mayor Claude Avri told news outlet France Bleu that he is "not going to touch the ban." When the first wave arrives, I'll be on the next flight to Chateauneuf-du-Pape where I can watch the invasion while sipping a rich red. "French Town Upholds 62-Year-Old Ban on UFOs" (Mysterious Universe) COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - A new museum dedicated to the life and work of Danish fairytale writer Hans Christian Andersen, author of The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid, is to be built in his birthplace of Odense, local authorities said on Monday. A donation of 125 million Danish crowns (27 million pounds) from the A. P. Moller Foundation, main owner of the shipping and oil group A. P. Moller-Maersk, will make the museum a reality after years in the planning, the city announced. The Japanese architecture group Kengo Kuma & Associates presented a winning proposal that will create a new "magical" museum over a total area of 5,600 sq m (60,300 sq feet) - most of it underground, a statement said. Officials said it would complement an existing museum in Odense, which charts Andersen's personal life and travels, by focusing more on the magic of his fairytales. It will provide "a unique possibility to create Andersens fairytale universe in a way that will appeal to both children and adults," said a local cultural official, Jane Jegind. Andersen's fairytales have been translated into 160 languages. Though he died more than 140 years ago in Copenhagen, where he lived most of his life, his works and related attractions such as the statue of the Little Mermaid in Copenhagen's harbour still draw many tourists to Denmark. ($1 = 6.7958 Danish crowns) (Reporting by Teis Jensen; Editing by Richard Balmforth) Neighbors' political ties key to substantial collaboration Updated: 2016-10-31 07:39 (China Daily) The 11th economic and trade ministers' meeting for China, Japan and Republic of Korea was held in Tokyo on October 29, 2016. Photo by Cai Hong Relations among China, Japan and the Republic of Korea have soured to such an extent that any three-way consensussuch as the latest consensus achieved by the trade ministers of the three neighborsoffers reason for celebration. In Tokyo on Saturday, the ministers agreed to establish a trilateral cooperation framework and speed up their negotiations on a trilateral free trade deal and those for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. As the three trade ministers pointed out, their consensus could be a starting point for achieving what the three countries once envisioned togethera harmonious, prosperous East Asia that will be envy of the rest of the world. As the trade ministers indicated, while each of the three countries is an economic powerhouse in its own right, their highly complementary economies can work miracles together; which is why they had an FTA and the RCEP on their lips. With all three countries at loggerheads with one another over various issues, that their ongoing diplomatic troubles have not dampened their shared enthusiasm for an economic partnership testifies to the great potential rewards of three-party collaboration. Rewards that are potentially not only economic, since the three share extensive other interests, but also most noticeably at the moment in security. Their discussions, encouragingly, reportedly underlined a shared belief in economic cooperation's "constructive role" in improving the overall ties of the three uneasy neighbors. The present state of their troubled relations shows rhetoric alone will not be enough to deliver what is needed. The era when lackluster political relations do not necessarily become a drag on economic ones appears to be over. Increasingly, the chill in the political weather is taking its toll on the area's economic landscape. Past rhetoric on an East Asia commonwealth sounds distant and surreal with enterprises in the three countries increasingly displaying worries about the political impasse. The trade ministers' agreement is surely conducive to three-party collaboration, but considering the difficulty in maneuvering a summit meeting for the leaders of the three nations, consensus at the trade-minister level may prove more symbolic than substantive. Otherwise, we would have witnessed impressive headway toward both the FTA and RCEP. To remove the political barricades hindering three-party economic partnership, improvements in political ties are indispensable. Yet such momentum remains weak, if not absent, with a three-party summit still pending. Xi Jinping Rodrigo Duterte Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte returned from an eventful jaunt to China 10 days ago, and since then Manila and Beijing's dealings over one of their most contentious disputes appear to have advanced, but how those dealings will progress in the days and weeks ahead is still uncertain. Late last week, reports began to emerge that the Chinese coast guard had departed from Scarborough Shoal, a rocky outcropping about 120 miles off the Philippine coast in the South China Sea, and that Philippine fishermen had returned. Chinese vessels had denied Philippine ships access to the shoal since 2012, when Beijing seized it amid a regional dispute over Beijing's claims in the South China Sea. And while it later became clear Chinese ships had not totally left Scarborough, they were behaving differently toward Philippine ships. "Filipino fishermen, who have been to [Scarborough Shoal] say that they have observed an undetermined number of Chinese white ships in the area but (the Filipinos) were not subjected to any harassment by these vessels and they were able to fish in peace," Philippine Defense Department spokesman Arsenio Andolong said in a statement on Sunday, according to AFP. The Philippine defense secretary himself heralded it as "a most welcome development," and fishermen who garnered bountiful catches on their return to Scarborough were also pleased with events. Philippines South China Sea Scarborough Shoal fishing fishermen "We're happy that we were able to sail back there," Gil Bauya, who netted a large catch of red snapper and other fish, told the Associated Press. "They just let us fish," he added, referring to three Chinese coast guard vessels seen near the shoal. "We were waiting what they would do, but they didn't do anything ..." Weiterlesen On Monday, the Chinese government confirmed that it made "proper arrangements" to allow Philippine fishermen to reaccess the shoal after Duterte expressed concern about the issue. Despite that decision, it doesn't appear that the change is the result of any definite agreement, and neither side has backed down on their respective claims over the shoal. "There was no expressed agreement but it seems like the traditional rights of our fisherman are being respected," Hermogenes Esperon, Duterte's national-security adviser, told reporters in Manila, according to the Associated Press. A fisherman repairs his boat overlooking fishing boats that fish in the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, at Masinloc, Zambales, in the Philippines April 22, 2015. REUTERS/Erik De Castro/File Photo "The president reiterated that we won in the court," Esperon said, referring to an international-court ruling rejecting Beijing's claims in the South China Sea a ruling that China still rejects. "The other leader also reiterated that it is historically their territory, so it was not resolved," Esperon added, referring to Chinese leadership. "Maybe not now but when go to another round of talks, we will again assert it," Esperon said. China itself has said the situation at Scarborough Shoal "has not changed and will not change." And the lack of a hard agreement leaves doubt about how enduring the present conditions at the shoal could be. "Its too early to tell," Gregory Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Business Insider, adding: "On Scarborough, this could be a sign of a new status quo in which both sides are free to fish but neither admits publicly that theyre 'allowing' or 'permitting' the other to do so (that language would be a sticking point)." "Or it could just be a temporary olive branch that Beijing is holding out while talks toward a long-term deal, one that may never happen, continue with the Duterte government." While members of Duterte's government have spoken highly of the development, Philippine lawmakers were wary of the vagaries in the new conditions at Scarborough. shoal "I hope it is for real and permanent sans a 'quid pro quo' (something in return)," Sen. Panfilo Lacson said of Filipino fishermen returning to the shoal. "If so, it is a powerful gesture of goodwill on the part of the Chinese government." People "need to know exactly what was discussed for the people to understand, for the stakeholders to know, because this [involves] our national interests," Philippine Rep. Gary Alajano told the Inquirer. "Did he (Mr. Duterte) ask for permission? We really dont know. And he (Mr. Duterte) has not said anything clearly which has always been his style, Alejano added. When asked about how long Filipino fishermen would be able to stay at Scarborough, another Philippine House of Representatives member, who was part of Duterte's delegation in Beijing, said, "That is why we need to have something in writing so we can invoke pacta sunt servanda," a Latin phrase meaning "agreements must be kept," the Inquirer noted. Duterte ' is bold, but also ... unpredictable' Amid the evolving situation at Scarborough, the broader direction of Duterte's foreign policy, and the leverage he will have to affect it, and how it will shape his public's perception of him, are uncertain. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (R) is shown the way by Chinese President Xi Jinping before a signing ceremony held in Beijing, China, October 20, 2016. Reuters/Ng Han Guan/Pool "We are just more than three months into the six-year term of a domestic-focused president who has little foreign policy experience, but has signaled quite a lot of foreign policy change without much specifics about how that would take place," Prashanth Parameswaran, an editor at The Diplomat, wrote in the days after Duterte's return from China. Duterte has expressed intense enmity toward the US and US leaders, a sentiment that likely has as much to do with his personal feelings as it does with the broader history of US-Philippine relations. But that doesn't mean relations between the two countries will be quickly severed. At every turn in Duterte's anti-US tirades, government officials and policymakers in the Philippines have walked back this assertions about "separating" from the US, and US officials say there has been no official communication about altering the relationship. And, as Poling has noted, deep social and economic ties bind the US and the Philippines, where the public maintains a strong pro-US attitude. That said, while there is still a great deal of time left in Duterte's term and more to be seen of his domestic and foreign policies, his early actions abroad have put him at risk for repercussions at home. It remains unclear what, if any, concessions Duterte will get from Beijing in the South China Sea. But the fact that the US remains broadly popular with Filipinos, who are also committed to their country's claims over Scarborough Shoal, means his months of tirades against Washington have raised the stakes for his dealings with China. "Duterte has bet the farm on Chinese goodwill here, even going so far as to preemptively throw overboard his only real leverage, the US alliance," Poling told Business Insider. "If he gets nothing in exchange, the backlash in the Philippines could be severe." South China Sea "On the Chinese side, Beijing will not want to squander this opportunity to put a wedge between the US and its closest ally in Southeast Asia," Poling added. "But it doesnt have nearly as much domestic pressure riding on a deal." "Duterte and Xi are walking a tightrope, trying to convince their publics of their efforts toward conciliation without making any significant concessions," regional-analysis firm Stratfor wrote the week after Duterte's China trip. "But Manila can little afford to bank on Beijing's continued goodwill in this or any future negotiations over the South China Sea." "His popularity will not save him from backlash if he is seen as trading the Philippines' maritime sovereignty for Chinese favor," Stratfor added. A Philippine supreme court justice went so far as to say Duterte could be impeached if he concedes Manila's sovereignty over the shoal. ("Those who threaten me with impeachment, go ahead," Duterte replied. "I don't have any problem, I'm already old.") Adding to the potential pitfalls for Duterte is Beijing's own cautiousness. China may be wary of embracing Duterte, given his attitude toward the US since taking office. "If this is how he treats old allies, how will he treat new friends," a Chinese source familiar with the planning of Duterte's visit to Beijing told The Diplomat. The Philippine leader "is bold, but also at the same time unpredictable." NOW WATCH: 'America has lost': The Philippines president just announced that he's allying with China, wants to talk to Putin More From Business Insider EU, Canada sign landmark deals to enhance economic, political partnership Updated: 2016-10-31 08:52 (Xinhua) BRUSSELS - The European Union (EU) and Canada signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, and the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) during a bilateral summit here on Sunday. Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks on during a news conference after the signing of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium, October 30, 2016. [Photo/Agencies] European Council President Donald Tusk, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker together with Robert Fico, Prime Minister of Slovakia which is holding the Presidency of the Council of the EU, signed the two landmark deals with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a ceremony held in Brussels. LONG-DELAYED CETA The EU-Canada free trade deal was reached in August 2014 after five years of negotiations. However, due to continued oppositions by various groups, including environmental activists, trade unionists and socialists, the final signature of the deal was delayed to this year. The signing ceremony planned for Thursday was cancelled after a Belgian region opposed to sign the deal. The French-speaking Belgian region of Wallonia concerned that the deal would jeopardize European farmers' interest and grants too much power to multinationals. The EU, a bloc with 500 million people, can only sign the deal with consent of all member states. The consensus reached by all regional parliaments of Belgium on approving the CETA Friday cleared the way for signing of the deal. Hailing CETA as "the most comprehensive, ambitious and progressive trade agreement ever negotiated" by both Canada and the EU, a joint declaration released after the ceremony said the deal would open a new dimension to EU-Canada economic ties. After signature, the free trade deal still needs to get consent from the European Parliament for it to enter into force provisionally. The two sides committed to the swift provisional implementation of CETA while ensuring all stakeholders, including employers, trade unions, consumer and environmental groups, participate in the ongoing implementation. Meanwhile, the deal comes with a binding joint interpretative instrument, which has legal status and will serve as an authentic interpretation of CETA, to explain what the provisions mean in practice. The landmark deal has sent a "positive signal" about the importance of free, fair and progressive international trade, the joint declaration said. "Today's decisions demonstrate that the disintegration of the Western community does not need to become a lasting trend," Tusk told a press conference after the ceremony, stressing that the West still possess enough strength and determination to counter fatalism of political's decay. Tusk said free trade and globalization have protected humanity from poverty, hunger and total conflict, but few people seem to believe or understand this today, noting "Post-factual reality and post-truth politics pose a great challenge on both sides of the Atlantic." "The alternative to free trade is isolationism and protectionism, a return to national egoisms, and as a result - the threat of violent conflict," he continued, "We should be able to convince our citizens that free trade is in their interest, and not just big companies and corporations." Juncker also celebrated the signature of the deal. He tweeted in social media after the ceremony, saying "Done. CETA is as of today the new golden standard in trade agreements." CETA would remove more than 99 percent of tariffs that were currently imposed on trade between the EU and Canada and was expected to increase bilateral trade by 12 billion euros (about $13.2 billion) per year. The EU estimated that at the end of transitional periods for duty elimination, Canada will eliminate duties worth 500 million euros a year for goods originating in the EU. ENHANCED SPA To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties, the EU and Canada are also committed to strengthening their cooperation on bilateral and international issues. The SPA deepens cooperation between the EU and Canada in fields such as foreign policy, crisis management, security and defense, energy and climate, enhanced mobility and people-to-people exchanges, the joint declaration said. Negotiations for the SPA launched in 2011. Around two-thirds of the agreement will enter into effect on a provisional basis after the signature, while the remaining parts will only enter into effect upon ratification by all EU member states. A joint declaration issued after the summit said the agreement will "enrich the political dimension of relationship and allow for more cooperation" in various sectors. Meanwhile, the leaders from the EU and Canada are committed to deepening cooperation between the two sides on foreign policy. "Today, the people of Canada and the European Union have opened a new chapter in their relationship. More than half a billion people on both sides of the Atlantic will enjoy new opportunities," Juncker told a press conference after the ceremony. Currently, the EU is Canada's second largest trading partner, with bilateral trade in goods and services amounting to more than 63 billion euros a year. (1 euro = $1.10) English Norwegian Sapa AS, the 50/50 joint-venture between Norsk Hydro ASA and Orkla ASA, will host an investor briefing on 3 November 2016. The briefing will be held at KS Agenda Mtesenter, Haakon VIIs gate 9, Oslo, from 2.00pm to 4.30pm (CET). During the presentation, Sapa will give an update on its financial and operational performance, followed by a Q&A session. A live webcast will also be available and details to access it will be received after registration. Please register your attendance at: http://www.sapagroup.com/sapainvestorbriefing3nov2016 After registration you will also be able to submit questions, and we encourage questions to be sent in advance of the briefing. Sapa is the world leader in aluminium solutions - a joint venture of the aluminium extrusion businesses of Orkla and Hydro. Sapa is shaping a lighter future through a global reach and local presence within extrusions, building systems, and precision tubing. Sapa has 22,800 employees in more than 40 countries, and the headquarters are located in Oslo, Norway. Investor contact Contact Stian Hasle Cellular +47 97736022 E-mail Stian.Hasle@hydro.com Press contact Contact Halvor Molland Cellular +47 92979797 E-mail Halvor.Molland@hydro.com Scandi Standard will publish its report for the second quarter on Wednesday, 3 November 2016 at 07.30 CET. Conference call at 10.oo CET The Company will host a conference call for the financial community at 10.00 CET the same day. The conference call will be hosted by Leif Bergvall Hansen, CEO and Tobias Wastensson, Head of Group Finance. Dial in numbers: Sweden: 08-50 510 036 UK: 020-3059 8125 All other locations: +44 20 3059 8125 The presentation used in the conference call will be published at www.scandistandard.com prior to the call. The conference call will also be audio webcasted in "listen-only" mode at the Scandi Standard website or click: Audio web cast (http://www.investis-live.com/scandi -standard/57038e7f840ec60a0023fe13/fdk7) For additional information, please contact ir@scandistandard.com Scandi Standard is the largest producer of chicken-based food products in the Nordic region with leading positions in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. The company produces, markets and sells chilled and frozen products under the brands Kronfagel, Danpo and Den Stolte Hane. In Norway, eggs are also packed and sold. For more information, see www.scandistandard.com English Lithuanian Vilnius, Lithuania, 2016-10-31 15:11 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Equity of INVL Technology as of 30 September 2016 was EUR 23.65 million or EUR 1.94 per share (compared to 1.99 euro per share at the end of 2015). The Company's net asset value as of 30 September 2016 was EUR 23,650,988 or EUR 1.9425 per share. Fair value of investments managed by the Company amounted to EUR 20.45 million on the 30 September 2016. In the nine months of 2016, it has increased by EUR 3.49 million mostly due to the acquisition of Algoritmu sistemos UAB and investments in the share capital of managed companies. Decrease in fair value on revaluation amounted to EUR 0.2 million. The cash and cash equivalents of the Company decreased from EUR 6.99 million to EUR 3.3 million in the first-third quarters of 2016. Net loss of the Company for the first-third quarters of 2016 was EUR 592 thousand. Additional information: Companies controlled by INVL Technology, which invests in IT businesses, are expanding international activities. The NRD group of companies, which already last year began implementing projects in Bangladesh, and the cybersecurity firm NRD CS in October of this year started the process of registering the new NRD Bangladesh Ltd, completion of which is planned by year-end. Once this new firm is established, companies controlled by INVL Technology will have representation in nine of the worlds countries. To date they have a corporate presence in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Moldova, Norway, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda. Were continuing the active investment phase, seeking to invest in national-level businesses based in European countries and promote the globalisation of their operations, thus creating opportunities for business expansion and market diversification to increase their value. Expansion and investments also reflect in the companys nine-month results, which relate to the projects of the businesses we control, said Kazimieras Tonkunas, Managing Partner for UTIB INVL Technology at INVL Asset Management. The companys portfolio of directly or indirectly controlled firms currently includes 16 businesses which this year have conducted projects in 15 countries, providing services to a variety of state and commercial institutions, banks, law enforcement structures and other organisations. Focused on global business expansion, the groups companies have developed sales partnerships in South Asia (in Bangladesh, Bhutan and Cambodia), Eastern and Southern Africa (in Tanzania, Burundi, the Kingdom of Lesotho, Uganda and Rwanda), Mauritius, and Europe (in Estonia, Norway, Denmark, Latvia, Moldova) and elsewhere. According to INVL Technologys nine-month results which were published today, the companys net asset value at 30 September 2016 was EUR 23.65 million, or EUR 1.9425 per share. Since the start of the year, this value has been influenced by the costs of restructuring, expansion of controlled businesses and reduced public-sector demand for IT services in the Baltic countries, and decreased by 2.4 per cent compared to the book value of shares at the end of 2015. The companys investments totalled EUR 20.45 million at the end of the third quarter and in nine months increased by EUR 3.49 million. The change was mainly due to the acquisitions of Andmevara and Algoritmu Sistemos in the first half of the year and investments in the capital of owned businesses. Due to the investments made, the companys cash and cash equivalents shrank from EUR 6.99 million to EUR 3.3 million in January-September. The companys net loss for the period was EUR 592 thousand. The fair value of the businesses controlled by INVL Technology at the end of the third quarter of 2016 was assessed by adjusting the independent valuation that UAB Deloitte Verslo Konsultacijos performed at the end of 2015 by the total amount of net profit earned or losses sustained and pay-outs to shareholders during the assessment period. INVL Technology operates as a cluster of IT businesses focused on sales to large corporate and public sector clients and active in four main areas: business climate improvement and e-governance, IT infrastructure, cybersecurity and solutions for IT intensive industries. INVL Technology has invested in the Norwegian company Norway Registers Development AS with subsidiaries NRD UAB and Etronika UAB in Lithuania, Norway Registers Development East Africa Ltd in Tanzania, Norway Registers Development Rwanda Ltd in Rwanda and associated company Infobank Uganda Ltd in Uganda. It has also invested in BAIP UAB with its subsidiary Acena UAB, NRD CS UAB and Algoritmu Sistemos UAB, all in Lithuania, and Estonias Andmevara AS with its subsidiary Andmevara SRL in Moldova. Calculations show that the companies controlled by INVL Technology have more than 300 employees. Upon its receipt of a closed-end investment company (UTIB) license in July this year, INVL Technologys management was assumed by INVL Asset Management a part of Invalda INVL, one of the leading asset management groups in the Baltics. MILWAUKEE, Oct. 31, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Transwestern today announces it has expanded its services throughout Southeast Wisconsin with the addition of the brokerage team from the former Siegel-Gallagher Inc., a 20-year-old commercial real estate firm based in Milwaukee. John Dulmes, Daniel Walsh and Marianne Burish join Transwestern as executive vice presidents, while Shaun Dempsey serves as vice president. Already home to our national Sustainability Services group, Milwaukee is familiar territory for Transwestern and has long been viewed as a market with tremendous opportunity to grow our presence, said Mike Watts, Transwesterns Midwest president. The Siegel-Gallagher teams strong reputation and comprehensive experience throughout Southeast Wisconsin ensures our clients will receive the highest level of service from professionals who know the market better than anyone. Focused primarily on tenant advisory, agency leasing and investment sales in the office sector, Dulmes, Walsh, Burish and Dempsey to date have executed more than $1 billion in real estate lease transactions on behalf of building owners. The team won the 2016 Deal of the Year Award from the Commercial Association of Realtors Wisconsin (CARW) for its representation of Bader Rutter & Associates in a 60,000-square-foot headquarters lease at 1433 N. Water St. in downtown Milwaukee. Representative clients include Ascension Health/CSM, BMO Harris Bank, Time Warner Cable, Medtronic, Alliant Energy Corp., Shorewest Realtors, Robertson Ryan and Associates, and Sprint Corp., along with a host of local and regional companies and investors. Transwestern provides our team the national resources to further grow our brokerage operations and strengthen our long-term client relationships here in Milwaukee, said Burish. We are excited to join a firm that is dedicated to the same culture, values and commitment to providing exceptional client service as we are. ABOUT TRANSWESTERN Transwestern is a privately held real estate firm of collaborative entrepreneurs who deliver a higher level of personalized service the Transwestern Experience. Specializing in Agency Leasing, Management, Tenant Advisory, Capital Markets, Research and Sustainability services, our fully integrated global enterprise adds value for investors, owners and occupiers of all commercial property types. We leverage market insights and operational expertise from members of the Transwestern family of companies specializing in development, real estate investment management and research. Transwestern has 34 U.S. offices and assists clients through more than 180 offices in 37 countries as part of a strategic alliance with BNP Paribas Real Estate. Experience Extraordinary at transwestern.com and @Transwestern. For updates from the Milwaukee office, follow @TranswesternMKE, formerly @sg_re. As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ Confidante of S.Korean president summoned on alleged intervention in state affairs Updated: 2016-10-31 15:21 (Xinhua) SEOUL - Choi Soon-sil, a longtime confidante of South Korean President Park Geun-hye, was summoned on Monday by prosecutors on various allegations, including her intervention in state affairs since Park took office in February 2013. The 60-year-old woman appeared in the headquarters of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in which hundreds of journalists gathered, indicating a huge attention to Choi suspected of illicitly accessing presidential reports without any security clearance and official position. Unable to utter a word, Choi was surrounded by journalists and protesters shouting that President Park should step down and Choi be arrested, according to TV footage. Right before entering into the prosecutors' building, Choi apologized to the public and begged for forgiveness, according to local media reports. Choi unexpectedly returned to Seoul on Sunday from London after staying in Europe for about two months. In a previous interview with a local newspaper, Choi had said she was unable to fly on airplanes for heart problems. UK universities forging Chinese connections Updated: 2016-10-31 17:40 By WANG MINGJIE(China Daily UK) A delegation including eight vice-chancellors from elite Russell Group universities is heading for Shanghai on Monday, to meet a group from China's leading universities in a bid to boost collaboration. The Russell Group represents Britain's top 24 research-intensive universities. The UK delegation will meet representatives from the China 9 alliance, which is also known as the C9. It will be the first meeting of its kind. The Russell Group-China 9 Dialogue will be co-chaired by Zhang Jie, president of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Professor David Greenaway, chair of the Russell Group and vice-chancellor of the University of Nottingham. The C9 alliance comprises nine elite research-intensive universities - Peking University, Tsinghua University, Fudan University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Nanjing University, the University of Science and Technology of China, Xi'an Jiaotong University, and Zhejiang University. The university leaders will discuss how best to foster excellence in research, innovation and higher education and consider the benefits of, and opportunities for, collaboration between the Russell Group and the Chinese universities. A joint statement is expected to be signed by both participants, aimed at exploring ways to deepen engagement and strengthen existing relationships, facilitate the sharing of information and address complex global challenges, and the explore additional ways to boost interaction. Greenaway said: "Our universities are international institutions that thrive on their academic links around the world. They recognise that big scientific, economic and social challenges will only be solved when the best minds work together through global research collaboration. There are huge mutual benefits for Russell Group universities and China's leading universities to work together." He believes the institutions have an important role to play. "By deepening our engagement and sharing our approaches to complex global challenges, our universities can continue to lead the world in producing excellent research," he said. "An agreement like this, with the C9, represents an exciting opportunity to further the exchange of ideas and knowledge." Vice-chancellors taking part are from University of the Birmingham, the Cardiff University, the University of Glasgow, Queen's University Belfast, University College London, the University of Warwick, and the University of York. A further five Russell Group universities will be represented by deputies from the University of Bristol, Kings College London, the University of Leeds, the University of Manchester, Newcastle University and Queen Mary University of London. (Sophie here, but posting an earlier question we received!) I am looking for a sofa that will be used every day, perhaps for as much as 8 hours a day (I tend to work on my laptop while sitting on it). We don't have pets or children but I definitely don't want anything too fussy. I'd like it to be comfortable and not too low. Not saying that price is no object, but am willing to pay for quality. Also, how long should a sofa last? Can you steer me towards brands? Thanks! And here's my answer: Hi sofa shopper how exciting! So, a sofa can last a lifetime and beyond. Well-made sofas have wood frames and the cushions made from feather-wrapped foam. (The percentage of feathers to foam is what makes it firmer or squishier.) A sofa is EXACTLY where you should dedicate a chunk of your budget since it'll get a lot of action especially yours it sounds like. If you're working with a designer, consider A. Rudin, a 4th generation family business that still hand-makes its furniture. Baker furniture is another great American brand, you can browse styles online and find a retailer through the site. Good luck! Ronald Reagan The value of a man should be seen in what he gives and not in what he is able to receive. Albert Einstein If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack. Winston Churchill It isnt so much that liberals are ignorant. Its just that they know so many things that arent so. With integrity nothing else counts; Without integrity nothing else counts. Winston Churchill Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life, but define yourself. Harvey S. Firestone It is inaccurate to say that I hate everything. I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty, and common decency. This makes me forever ineligible for public office. H. L. Menken Referenda insure all have a voice in land use decisions. U.S. Supreme Court Listen carefully to first criticism of your work. Note just what it is about your work the critics don't like - then cultivate it. That's the only part of your work that's individual and worth keeping. Jean Cocteau NASA Future Engineers Challenge Involves Mars Astronauts' Health The Mars Medical Challenge is the fifth in a series of Future Engineers Challenges where students submit a digital 3-D model that is intended to be 3-D printed and could be used for a wide range of medical needs, including diagnostic, preventative, first aid, emergency, surgical, and/or dental purposes. NASA is challenging students in grades K-12 to design objects that could be used by an astronaut to maintain physical health on a three-year mission to Mars. The Mars Medical Challenge is the fifth in a series of Future Engineers Challenges where students submit a digital 3-D model that is intended to be 3-D printed and could be used for a wide range of medical needs, including diagnostic, preventative, first aid, emergency, surgical, and/or dental purposes, the agency said Oct. 26. The health challenges are significant and have been researched by NASA for decades, including aboard the International Space Station, where astronauts have health-related supplies and equipment. NASA's In-Space Manufacturing Project is demonstrating the capability of utilizing 3-D printers and recyclers for in-space additive manufacturing technology aboard the station. "This is the first step toward realizing a fabrication capability to print on demand, or a 'fab lab,' for long-duration missions and sustaining human exploration of other planets. As humans venture farther from Earth supplies won't be readily available and will be expensive to ship to astronauts, so we are looking at designs that can be printed off-planet using a 3-D printer and recycled when they are no longer needed," according to the agency. Students ages 5-19 years old are invited to use 3-D modeling software to submit their designs; they can win prizes ranging from a Mars prize pack to a 3-D printer for their school or a trip to Houston for a tour of NASA's Johnson Space Center. The challenge closes on Jan. 25, 2017 with winners announced on March 28, 2017. NASA is doing a series of these challenges in conjunction with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Foundation. For more information on the challenge, visit http://www.futureengineers.org/marsmedical. Natural Gas Storage Facility Report Calls for Risk Management, Planning Changes The document recommends that natural gas storage facility operators conduct risk assessments, develop and implement transition plans to address high-risk infrastructure, and apply robust procedures to maintain safety and reliability as the transition to modern well design standards is occurring. The federal Interagency Task Force on Natural Gas Storage Safety released a report last week with well integrity, safety, and environmental protection recommendations for avoiding leaks like last year's massive natural gas leak at California's Aliso Canyon site. The report chronicles lessons learned from that leak and analyzes the more than 400 underground natural gas storage wells in the United States, with 44 recommendations for industry and federal, state, and local regulators and governments to reduce the likelihood of future leaks and minimize any leak that occurs. Overall, the report says, "while incidents at U.S. underground natural gas storage facilities are rare, the potential consequences of those incidents can be significant and require additional actions to ensure safe and reliable operation over the long term." It recommends that, except under limited circumstances, facility operators phase out single point of failure designs that contributed to the inability to swiftly control and repair the Aliso Canyon leak. The document recommends that natural gas storage facility operators conduct risk assessments, develop and implement transition plans to address high-risk infrastructure, and apply robust procedures to maintain safety and reliability as the transition to modern well design standards is occurring. The task force was co-chaired by Franklin Orr, under secretary for Science and Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy, and Marie Therese Dominguez, administrator of DOT's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. "Natural gas plays an important role in our nation's energy landscape, and we need to make sure the associated infrastructure is strong enough to maintain energy reliability, protect public health, and preserve our environment. No community should have to go through something like Aliso Canyon again. Companies operating natural gas storage facilities should adopt the recommendations as quickly as possible to reduce the risk of future leaks," they said; both Orr and Dominguez visited the site of the Aliso Canyon leak shortly after it was controlled. The task force pursued three primary areas of study: integrity of wells at natural gas storage facilities, public health and environmental effects from natural gas storage leaks, and energy reliability concerns in the case of future leaks. It held three public workshops this year to hear from local and state stakeholders, including gas storage operators and state regulators. DOE reported that PHMSA plans to issue interim regulations regarding underground natural gas storage in the next few months, regs that incorporate API Recommended Practices 1170 and 1171, but the new report is intended to inform PHMSA's phased rulemaking process and to provide guidance to industry so that companies can begin implementing changes immediately. The multi award winning Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort: download images here. PHUKET, THAILAND The Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort has won Best Luxury Family Hotel Southeast Asia in the World Luxury Hotel Awards 2016. The acclaimed 255 key beachfront resort in Laguna Phuket in Thailand has won a string of awards since opening in April 2013. The property, with its large freeform pool, spiralling water slide, and Thai design lobby giving a unique sense of arrival, is located in Laguna Phuket, Asias first integrated resort 25 minutes from Phuket airport. Sammy Musa, Outrigger Resorts Middle East representative accepted the award on stage at the World Luxury Hotel Awards Gala Ceremony, 29 October, in the St Regis Doha Hotel in Qatar. The awards are presented to luxury hotels in over 50 different categories on a country, regional and global basis. Public vote selects all winners. The award shows real recognition for the hard work and dedication of the Outrigger hotel staff, said Tony Pedroni, General Manager of the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort. Our commitment to the Outrigger way ensures that we treat all guests like family. Special Offer To celebrate the best family luxury resort award, the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort is offering free meals at Locavore, Metzos and Edgewater restaurants for children 12 years or younger when dining with parents when the holiday booking at Outrigger Phuket is made via Outrigger.com. All rooms at the resort come with a day bed and two children can stay comfortably in each room with parents. To take advantage of the offer, which is available for trips up to 31 October 2017, click here. List of Awards In September, Metzos at the Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort in Thailand, won the Best Restaurant Within a Hotel global award at the International Hotel and Property Awards 2016. In September 2016, the resort won the Best Island Resort for MICE in the 2016 China Travel & Meetings Industry Awards Business Travel & MICE In October 2015, the resort won Best Resort (Service Excellence) Award at the Travel Weekly Asia Readers Choice Awards. It was also voted the fourth best resort for families in Thailand in the 2015 TripAdvisor Travelers Choice Awards. BEIJING, Oct. 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ This week, Chinese cross-border e-commerce marketplace DHgate.com passed the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) annual review for the fifth year in a row, in recognition of the reliability and safety of their payment system. DHgate.com was also the ninth enterprise in China, and the only e-commerce enterprise in China to become Visa QSP verified, and additionally, earlier this year also passed the MasterCard Payment Facilitator, indicating their ability to act as a third party payment service provider for receiving order from foreign cards. DHgate.com has distinguished itself within the cross border payment arena, possessing a strong risk control and payment system; ensuring safe, quick and convenient online payment for foreign currencies. DHgate.com offers over 30 payment methods, including diversified international payment methods like Visa, MasterCard and American Express, and local payment methods for Singapore, the UK, France, Germany, Russia, Holland, Australia, etc. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) annual review is conducted by the PCI Security Standards Council, which according to their website, is a global open body formed to develop, enhance, disseminate, and assist with the understanding of security standards for payment account security. The Councils founding members, American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, MasterCard, and Visa Inc., have agreed to incorporate the PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) as part of the technical requirements for each of their data security compliance programs. A representative from DHgate.com said: DHgate.com has passed the annual PCI DSS review five years in a row, which demonstrates our payment systems stability and reliability. Our users personal information is protected under our top-of-the-line security system. Thus, buyers can use their credit cards to complete transactions, without hesitation. Sellers have also benefitted from this development. Since buyers trust in our platform is increasing, in turn, buyers trust our sellers more, leading to more trade between the two parties. Customers then share their experiences with others, bringing more buyers to the platforms, increasing sellers orders. ABOUT DHgate.com DHgate.com is the first to market and the biggest transactional cross-border B2B e-commerce marketplace in China, aiming to provide global buyers with quality products at competitive prices. Founded in 2004, DHgate.com has approximately 10 million global buyers from 230 countries and regions, with 1.4 million global sellers offering 40 million products. DHgate.coms business enables buyers to directly access global manufacturers of the worlds top brands with rich product selections. DHgate.com is an all-in-one platform with integrated services for international logistics, cross-border payments, internet financing, etc. DHgate.coms US, UK, Spain, and UAE product distribution warehouses allow for 24 hour delivery and convenient product returns & refunds, bringing great convenience to buyers at http://www.dhgate.com. http://www.dhgate.com read more By Babak Dehghanpisheh AIN NASIR, Iraq (Reuters) - Gun trucks and humvees streamed north on a highway heading to Mosul on Sunday flying the banners of Shiite militias along with Iraqi flags while blaring religious songs. The convoys were the first clear sign of a new player on the battlefield in the U.S.-backed offensive to retake Mosul from Islamic State: Hashid Shaabi or Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a coalition of Shi'ite militias. Although it reports officially to Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, the coalition is mostly made up of groups trained by Iran and loyal to its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. They have close ties with General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Quds Brigade, the extra-territorial arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards. He was seen touring the frontlines around Mosul last week. Among the banners that could be seen flying from artillery cannons, communication towers and buildings recently retaken from Islamic State were those of Kataib Hezbollah and Asaib Ahl al-Haq, two of the main Iranian-backed groups, alongside the Badr Organization, considered the largest. Dozens of holes dug on the side of the highway for several kilometres indicated how heavily mined the highway had been only a couple of days before and the efforts the force had gone through to clear the road. One of the first villages retaken by the PMF since announcing combat operations on Saturday was Ain Nasir, some 30 kilometres south of Mosul. One fighter who participated in the battle to retake the village on Saturday night said that Islamic State had put up little resistance and that fighters had taken several villagers hostage during their retreat, using them as human shields. "We are fighting to push Daesh out of Iraq," said Adel Khiali, 26, a PMF fighter affiliated with the Badr Organization who was formerly an Iraqi army soldier. Daesh is an Arabic acronym for Islamic State. MORTAR FIRE The Iraqi army and federal police came in to help clear the area after the PMF, Khiali said. Still, as Khiali spoke, at least one mortar round hit the village, indicating that the area was not yet secure. There was a sense of resentment among some fighters on the battlefield on Sunday that the PMF have been misrepresented and that their sacrifices have not been appreciated. "We fight to help people return to their villages and they call us militias, said Ali Khiali, a 40- year old PMF fighter affiliated with the Badr Organization. Is that fair? Adel and Ali Khiali are brothers. The U.N in July said it had a list of more than 640 Sunni Muslim men and boys reportedly abducted by Shiite militiamen in Falluja, a former militant stronghold west of Baghdad, and about 50 others who were summarily executed or tortured to death. Abadi's Shi'ite-led government and the PMF say a limited number of violations had occurred and were investigated, but they deny abuses were widespread and systematic. But Amnesty International says that in previous campaigns, the Shi'ite militias have committed "serious human rights violations, including war crimes" against civilians fleeing Islamic State-held territory. The flying of Shi'ite flags by the militias and also some regular army and police units in the mostly Sunni region around Mosul has been a cause of concern for local officials. But the Popular Mobilization forces have not been linked to any sectarian incidents so far in the campaign that started on Oct 17 with air and ground support from the U.S.-led coalition. "Its not right what they say about us," Adel said. When they call us militias its like they are insulting us. Though Sunday was only the second day that the PMF had officially joined the battle against Islamic State, the banners and slogans of the organization made it clear that theirs is a pan-Shiite cause that may not end at Iraqs borders. Tens of thousands of Iraqi Shiite militia fighters have crossed the border to fight on behalf of the government of President Bashar al-Assad with backing from Iran, but the PMF is not officially involved in the fighting there. This could change after Mosul. The Shi'ite paramilitary coalition said it plans to fight then alongside Assad's forces. "We are fully ready to go to any place that contains a threat to Iraqi national security," Ahmed al-Asadi, a PMF spokesman, told a news conference in Baghdad on Saturday, mentioning Syria as the main "arena" for the fighting. Black graffiti on the wall of an office of the Badr Organization in Qayyara on Sunday read: "Baghdad to the gates of Damascus." A few kilometers away on the highway between Qayyara and Mosul, a stall serving food to PMF fighters had a large portrait of Sheikh Nimr Baqer Nimr, the Saudi Shiite cleric executed by the Saudi government in January, outside. Several checkpoints and vehicles were also adorned with portraits of Khamenei, Irans supreme leader. (Editing by Clelia Oziel) People are spending more money on Halloween this year than they ever have before. And you might have Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump to thank for that. Before this year, 2012 held the record for highest amount spent on Halloween. And there was even an uptick in 2008 even though the country was in the middle of a recession. So it stands to reason that people tend to spend a bit more on Halloween during election years. That could be because of all those Trump and Clinton Masks youve likely seen around Halloween stores. But it could also be because people simply need a release from the stress caused by a long election season. Whatever the reason, trends like this are important for companies to note. If you have a store that sells any Halloween supplies, you should be aware of peoples spending habits so that you can create messaging thats most likely to get them to buy. What You Can Learn From This Halloween Business Trend? Halloween and the election might not seem like they have a lot in common on the surface. But tons of industries experience changes like this based on factors that arent directly related. So its important that businesses pay attention to trends in various areas to stay ahead in their market. Kid Science Advisors Talk STEM at White House The White House recently held its first convening of a student-led advisory council on improving STEM education in K12 schools, as part of its Kid Science Advisor program. Among the students was Jacob Leggette, who first pitched the idea for a Kid Science Advisor to President Barack Obama at the White House Science Fair last April. Obama was receptive to the idea and following the event, students from around the country submitted more than 2,500 ideas about science and STEM education to the White House, according to a White House statement. Last week, Leggette and 10 other students from around the country met with top scientists at the White House to discuss STEM instruction. The student from Baltimore, Maryland is interested in closing the digital divide and increasing access to technology. Leggettes interests align with the Obama Administrations efforts to increase access and diversity in STEM fields. At the convening, more than half of the student advisors were girls who are interested in STEM careers. Anahi Gandara-Rodriguez, a 15-year-old from Denver, Colorado, sits on the student council for her work connecting low-income students to technology. She is currently developing a smart cane for blind people. Jamie Milota, a 17-year-old from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, led a team that created and taught computer science lessors to middle and elementary school students. She also created a game experience that helps promote low-income neighborhoods. The Kid Science Advisors shared what is interesting to them about STEM and other ideas that could help shape future STEM initiatives. To learn more about the kids involved in the program, visit the White House blog. Personalized Learning Ohio School District Taps Digital Content for Personalized Learning Brunswick City Schools in Ohio has entered a seven-year partnership with Discovery Education, in an effort to improve student engagement and to incorporate digital content into classrooms. Through the partnership, all K12 Brunswick City educators will integrate the Science Techbook and have access to the Discovery Education Streaming Plus service that supplements instruction across all curricular areas. Additionally, middle school educators will integrate the Social Studies Techbook. The techbooks are digital textbooks that are aligned to rigorous standards, support a comprehensive curriculum, and are updated regularly at no cost, according to Discovery Education. They can be used in one-to-one or group environments. The district can also utilize advice from the Discovery Education Community as it implements the digital content in schools. Brunswick City Schools digital transition is dedicated to more deeply engaging our students in learning and providing them the opportunities to develop the skills they need to be successful in the Information Age, said Michael Mayell, district superintendent, in a prepared statement. To learn more about the digital content, visit the Discovery Education site. An English bibliotaph of fifty years residence in Wales pontificates about politics (slightly off-message), films and trivia. Acting secretary of Aberavon and Neath Liberal Democrats. Candidate for Neath in the Westminster elections of 1997 & 2017 and the Welsh general election of 2016. - Tanzanian President John Pombe Magufuli sent Kenyan parliamentary staff into panic after he arrived earlier than scheduled - The early arrival of Magufuli forced Speaker of Parliament Justin Muturi to run in order to meet him Tanzanian President John Pombe Magufuli on Monday, October 31, sent Kenyan parliamentary staff scampering in panic after he arrived earlier than expected. President Magufuli arrives in Kenya. READ ALSO: Nairobi city traffic department fails to clear traffic for Tanzania's President The Tanzanian leader had been expected to lay a wreath at Mzee Jomo Kenyatta's mausoleum located at the parliament buildings. Magufuli first went to Hotel Intercontinental and within minutes left for parliament. The arrival of the Tanzanian leader surprised the parliamentary staff including the Speaker Justin Muturi who had to leave everything he was doing to rush and meet him. Muturi is said to literally run in order to meet the Tanzanian leader. READ ALSO: Kenyans prove how they badly want Tanzania president President Magufuli and the Speaker of Parliament Justin Muturi. READ ALSO: President John Magufuli of Tanzania given heroic welcome in Kenya Later the Tanzanian president was received by the Clerk of the National Assembly who had been sent the speaker of parliament. President Magufuli lays a wreath at the mausoleum of Mzee Jomo Kenyatta. Magufuli laid a wreath at the mausoleum of the founding president before heading to State House where he was welcomed by President Uhuru Kenyatta. Watch below the video President Magufuli at State House. Source: TUKO.co.ke DGAP-News: CTS Eventim AG & Co. KGaA / Key word(s): Mergers & Acquisitions The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. PRESS RELEASE Two on one ticket: Ticketcorner and Starticket join forces in Swiss ticketing Ruemlang and Zurich, 31. October 2016 - Ticketcorner and Starticket will enter into an alliance and build a joint Swiss ticketing group. Ticketcorner Holding AG, which is half owned by each of CTS Eventim Group and Ringier, will hold 75% and Tamedia 25%. Ticketcorner Holding AG, owned by CTS Eventim and Ringier, on the one side and Tamedia on the other side have signed a transaction agreement today under which Ticketcorner and Starticket will in the future join forces in the Swiss market. The merger is still subject to the approval of the Swiss Competition Commission and shall be completed after approval in the first half of 2017. The merger of Ticketcorner and Starticket creates a far-reaching ticketing group with innovative services, high-performance platforms, mobile apps and scanning solutions for event costumers. Ticketcorner and Starticket react with this step to the increasing and more intensive competition in the ticketing business due to international providers, fast technological development and the growing importance of direct sales. International network and anchoring in Switzerland With CTS Eventim, a leading ticketing company in Europe, as a partner, Ticketcorner and Starticket will benefit from innovative ticketing solutions and an ongoing transfer of knowhow, innovation and technology. Ringier and Tamedia, the Swiss media groups, will ensure the anchoring in Switzerland. The joint ticketing group shall be led by Andreas Angehrn, the present CEO of Ticketcorner. Klaus-Peter Schulenberg, CEO of CTS Eventim AG & Co. KGaA: "With the merger of Ticketcorner and Starticket, event ticketing in Switzerland is moved to a new level and many synergies will arise for the benefit of promoters and ticket purchasers. Together with our new partners at Tamedia and our long-time co-shareholder Ringier, we can provide an interesting combination of assets to the joint venture." Marc Walder, CEO of Ringier: "The merger of Ticketcorner and Starticket reflects that ticketing - just like other industries - is faced with major challenges. Digitalization, new technologies and distribution systems are changing this market radically." Christoph Tonini, CEO of Tamedia: "Our event customers will benefit from the merger of Ticketcorner and Starticket through more reach, and our ticket purchasers through a bigger selection of events. We are looking forward to the cooperation with Ringier and CTS Eventim." Via Ticketcorner Holding, Ticketcorner AG is currently half owned by each of CTS Eventim Group and media company Ringier. Starticket is part of media group Tamedia. In the new Ticketcorner AG, Ticketcorner Holding will hold 75% of the shares, and Tamedia will hold 25%. The parties have agreed not to disclose any further details about the transaction. For further information: CTS Eventim: Engel & Zimmermann AG, Communication Consulting Agency Dr. Andreas Bachmeier, Tel. +49 89 8935 633, info@engel-zimmermann.de Ringier: Media Relations, media@ringier.ch, +41 44 259 64 44 Tamedia: Christoph Zimmer, Leiter Kommunikation, christoph.zimmer@tamedia.ch, +41 44 248 41 35 2016-10-31 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 DUBAI (Reuters) - The creation of a single currency in the Gulf Arab region has become inevitable and is only a matter of time, the executive president of Oman's central bank was quoted as saying. Oman is not one of the countries pushing for a common currency, but "serious measures" are being studied to achieve it, the Saudi Arabian-owned Al Sharq al-Awsat newspaper quoted Hamood Sangour al-Zadjali as saying in a statement. Omani officials were not immediately available on Monday to comment on the report, and it was not clear whether Zadjali's remarks signalled any new momentum for the region's single currency project. The creation of monetary union became a primary objective of the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council in the early 1980s. Four of them - Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain - formed a joint monetary council and a forerunner to a Gulf central bank in March 2010. But the euro crisis and a lack of political will have slowed the project. Oman withdrew from the plan in 2006 and the United Arab Emirates pulled out in 2009. Many bankers in the region say privately that introduction of a single currency remains unlikely for the foreseeable future, given technical difficulties and the fact that GCC states are struggling with low oil prices, which are having varying impacts on their economies. Saudi Arabia has slowed sharply and has been forced into painful fiscal reforms, while Qatar and Kuwait, with relatively strong state finances, have come under less pressure. (Reporting by Andrew Torchia; Editing by Andrew Heavens) In the final part of our job crunch series, well walk you through the best way to strengthen your position in Singapores job market. Well also point out which sectors are in demand and which are not at the moment. The Job Scene Now For the first time in four years, the number of job openings in Singapore is smaller than the number of job seekers. A study by ManpowerGroup revealed that Singapore experienced its sharpest incline in talent shortages in 2015. As many as 52 per cent of the employers who participated in the study said that the lack of talented personnel weighed down on their client relations. Heres an outline of vacancies and redundancies for the second quarter of 2016 by the Ministry of Manpower: Jobs25 Patrick Tay, the assistant secretary-general of NTUC, said jobs were available, but the mismatched skill sets were stopping posts from being filled up. Here are the highlights of the talent shortage survey for 2015 by ManpowerGroup. screen-shot-2016-10-29-at-11-48-00-pm screen-shot-2016-10-29-at-11-48-15-pm screen-shot-2016-10-29-at-11-48-30-pm Source: ManpowerGroup Source: ManpowerGroup What Job Seekers and Employees Can Do There are always options available to improve a dire situation. You could take a look at Jobsbank, a site from WorkForce Singapore, which helps local jobseekers and employers connect through an online job matchmaking platform. Nope, no dating involved here its more like a net that reaches out to a bigger pool of jobseekers beyond the usual career centres. Jobseekers using Jobsbanks services will get notified when there are new vacancies that fit their job preferences. Their uploaded resumes can be searched and viewed by potential employers, and they can also track their job application status on the website. Other useful government initiatives are Skillsfuture, which weve covered here, and the Professional Conversion Programme, or PCP, which aims to smoothen the transition of mid-career professionals over various industries. And What About Fresh Graduates? Fresh graduates will have to swim against some pretty strong currents to secure a job. Story continues Glints CEO and co-founder, Oswald Ng, told local media about the skill gap between graduates and the jobs they apply for. His advice on to fresh graduates is to polish their skills through internships or part-time positions. This way, theyd be able to gain the specific skills they sorely need and that employers want. Another key person in the recruitment arena, Foo See Yang, who is the VP and country manager of Kelly Services Singapore, states that there's a flourishing interest in freelance and contractual workers. Contract work is a possible long-term career option which could provide similar remuneration as a full-time employee. The bottom line is this job security is no longer the central focus, but career longevity is. The harsh truth is that in the work environment today, no one is irreplaceable. (By Annette Rowena) Related Articles - Series 3: Jobs cuts in the financial sector - Confidence hits seven-year low whats next for Singapores job market? - Singaporeans are the unhappiest when it comes to job happiness JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Shares in South African cement maker PPC fell to a five week-low on Monday, after the company said it expected half-year profit to be lower due to high financing costs. PPC said headline earnings per share for the six months ended September would be between 8 cents and 19 cents, down 65 and 85 percent from the comparable period. "The main contributor to the decline relates to high financing costs," PPC said in a statement. Shares in PPC, which are down 50 percent year-to-date, fell more than 12 percent after the announcement. They were down more than 7 percent at 1203 GMT. South Africa's biggest cement maker scrapped its dividend earlier this year to conserve cash to help to repay debt. PPC is grappling to service dollar-denominated debt after a sharp fall in the rand and other currencies in Africa, including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. "On the face of it the trading statement appears negative, however the contraction wasn't unexpected," Avior Capital Markets analyst Gareth Visser said. PPC also said it achieved reasonable cement volume growth, but weakness in selling prices has led to a marginal increase in gross profit. Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation for the period will approximate that recorded for the six months ended 31 March 2016, the company said. "It all comes down to what you're seeing with growth in the country with manufacturing and construction, there is no real buy in that space at the moment and they've got debt to continue to service," Independent Securities trader Ryan Woods said. "That's what the market is also worried about, they've got debt to service and there is no real sign of growth coming through." In September, PPC raised 4 billion rand ($295 million) via a rights issue, which was heavily oversubscribed, allowing the company to settle some of its debt. PPC has begun pushing deeper into the rest of Africa, building factories in Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo in a bid to generate 40 percent of sales outside its home market by 2017. ($1 = 13.5585 rand) (Reporting by Nqobile Dludla. Editing by Jane Merriman) Fears are growing for Kim Jong-uns wife, who has not been seen in public for over seven months. Ri Sol-ju married the dictator in 2012, but there has been no sighting of her since March 28, when she was on a tour of a new commercial district and health complex in Pyongyang. Experts now believe that the First Lady of North Korea may be pregnant - or may have fallen out with Kim Jong-uns younger sister, Kim Yo-jong, who is seen as the true power behind her brothers rule in her lead role at the Propaganda and Agitation Department. Missing: Ri Sol-ju was last seen in public in March (Reuters) MORE: Men on stag do adopt seven newborn puppies after stray dog leads them to her babies MORE: Smartphones and tablets are stopping children from getting a good nights sleep Toshimitsu Shigemura, a professor at Tokyos Waseda University who study the leadership in the secretive nation, told The Telegraph that the Ris disappearance may be down to any number of reasons. He said: There have also been reports of instability in Pyongyang and even of several attempted attacks, including by factions in the North Korean military, against Kim last year. It is possible that Ri has not appeared in public because she is being closely guarded. Dictator: Kim Jong-un married his wife in 2012 (Getty) This is not the first time that Ri vanished from public view - in 2012 she was kept from the cameras while she was pregnant with a baby girl. If she has fallen out with the leadership, her life may be in danger as Kim Jong-un has previously executed close family members. His uncle, Jang Sung-taek, was described as human scum for an alleged plot to overthrow his nephew. Top pic: AFP The Chocolate Lady on the plaza in historic Old Mesilla buys at least 800 pounds of pecans from local growers every year for its rich turtles, toffee, bark and other handmade treats. The small shop is among 13 stops on one of the states newest culinary trails, the New Mexico True Chocolate Trail, which features chocolatiers who make their own confections right here in the state, particularly those whove added a New Mexico twist chile, pinon or pecans, for example. People really do crave authentic flavors in something that is already so beloved as chocolate, says New Mexico Tourism Secretary Rebecca Latham. In fact, people in New Mexico have been loving chocolate for a long, long time; archaeologists have traced chocolate use back 1,000 years at Chaco Canyon. The Land of Enchantment also boasts the Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail, the New Mexico Ale Trail and the Breakfast Burrito Byway. Like the others, the Chocolate Trail is designed to draw tourists to destinations around the state. Weve seen such tremendous success with all our trails and we know theyre very useful with trip planning and trip inspiration, Latham says. Ready to expand The Chocolate Trail has been around informally for a few years but was revitalized earlier this year with a new online map to make it more user-friendly. For the green chile cheeseburger and breakfast burrito trails, diners voted on which restaurants should be included. But there are so few chocolatiers in the state that theres room for everyone on the Chocolate Trail, and the Tourism Department plans to add new chocolatiers as it learns of them. Theres nothing Id like to expand more than the Chocolate Trail, Latham says. We want to be sure theyre all included. Mesillas Chocolate Lady makes chocolates by hand in the European tradition but also offers such things as a sweet and spicy chile-pecan bark, says chocolatier assistant Lucy Rathgeber. The shop also puts pecans and its popular pecan crunch candy into icy treats. In southern New Mexico its hot, so we also make homemade ice cream, Rathgeber says. Albuquerque shops At Joliesse in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, husband-and-wife chocolatiers Troy and Grace Lapsys also make European-style chocolates by hand. We are French tradition, New Mexico character, Troy Lapsys says, adding they are the only French-trained master chocolatiers in the state. They try to merge flavors and use local produce such as lavender that is grown within half a mile of the shop, New Mexico pecans and chipotle, Hatch and habanero chiles. A lavender sea salt caramel is among the specialties at Joliesse. Joliesse also has a dessert and wine bar where chocoholics can sip the Wicked coffee brew made with espresso beans, 70 percent dark chocolate and handmade chile syrup. We do wine and chocolate pairings quite often, Lapsys adds. You can really experience the back and forth of how chocolate and wine interact with one another. He also has partnered with local breweries to put on beer and chocolate pairings. Other Albuquerque shops on the Chocolate Trail are: The Chocolate Cartel, where flourless chocolate cake and Mayan-style hot chocolate made with red chile and other spices are hot commodities along with other goodies made with Venezuelan chocolate known for its dark, cherry-roasted flavor. The Chocolate Cartel is run by master chocolatier Scott J. Van Rixel and his brother Tim. The Chocolate Dude offers its own versions of Oreos, graham crackers and Rice Krispies treats, plus freshly made truffles, fudge, brittles, chocolate-covered fruit and coffee and chocolate drinks. Theobroma, where molded chocolate comes in every shape imaginable from sports-themed pieces to chile peppers and fish. In Santa Fe The chocolate tradition also flourishes in Santa Fe. Chocolate Smith uses organic dark chocolate and pure flavors such as cinnamon, coconut and cherry to craft such treats as butter caramel with pecans, pinons or sea salt. Kakawa Chocolate House specializes in drinking elixirs with recipes from historical sources, including intensely flavored Colombian drinking chocolate spiced with native herbs, flowers and chiles, as well as contemporary creations. The artisanal chocolate shop aims to balance the traditional with the cutting edge and uses fresh and seasonal ingredients to make such things as agave caramels. Todos Santos Chocolates is famous for its gold- or silver-leaf covered chocolate Milagros. C.G. Higgins coffeehouse offers handmade chocolate drinks, all-natural truffles, toffees and chocolates. Specialties at Senor Murphy include pinon brittles, rolls, tortugas, fudges and toffees as well as chile-infused candies and chile-dusted nuts. Although it is primarily a bakery cafe, Chocolate Maven also is known for its rich chocolate fudge, Mayan chile hot chocolate, chocolate croissants and chocolate cakes and cookies. Two unexpected entries on the trail in Santa Fe are Terra at the Four Seasons and Santa Fe Brewing Co. They are taking it one step farther, Latham says. Terra offers red-chile-infused chocolate desserts and drinks while Santa Fe Brewing turns out an Adobe Igloo beer with dusty raw cacao nibs and red chile flakes for a unique twist on a traditional winter brew. Fairs, festivals Also on the trail are two festivals. Why stop with just storefronts? Latham says, adding that fairs and festivals are strong motivators for travel. Chocolate Fantasia brings the best of Grant Countys confectioners together in February in historic downtown Silver City to offer a taste of their homemade gourmet chocolates. The Southwest Chocolate and Coffee Fest held in March in Albuquerque touts itself as the nations largest consumer festival for chocolate, coffee and gourmet foods and includes chocolate eating contests, live music, cooking demos and more. Some might be a part of your everyday life they could be your go-to source for breakfast burritos or beer. Others work largely out of the limelight, excelling by virtue of their highly specialized products or services. There are those just getting started, but also many that have roots going back at least 50 years. The New Mexico Private 100, now in its 21st edition, once again demonstrates the range of homegrown businesses thriving in the Land of Enchantment. The companies that made this years list roast coffee beans (New Mexico Pinon Coffee), install air conditioners (TLC Plumbing & Utility) and manufacture wireless microphone systems (Lectrosonics). They design. They build. They deliver. And together they employ 10,950 people an average of more than 100 apiece. They also combined for $4 billion in gross revenue last year. Its worthwhile to celebrate them for those and other accomplishments, said Steven Keene, managing partner of Moss Adams LLP, which sponsors the Private 100 with Modrall Sperling, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and the Journal. We tend to give a lot of focus to new business and new jobs, Keene said. This (is) important, but equally important are those businesses that have been here, and that have continued to provide employment and support to New Mexico in many ways. While statistics often paint a bleak economic picture New Mexico has not fully shaken the recession and continues to chart among the nations worst for unemployment the list provides a forum to honor those that have persevered and continue to prosper. I think it shows that there are still positive things happening in New Mexico despite current economic headwinds, said Paul Mondragon, market president for Bank of America Merrill Lynch. That includes Marios Pizza, a four-location restaurant chain where business remains steady despite the larger economic forces and the influx of national chains now competing for both customers and employees. Established in 1986, Marios employs 160 people and is currently seeking expansion opportunities on Albuquerques West Side. It makes us feel good (to make this list), said Eddy Burgarello, who owns the business with brothers Joe and Sal, building upon the foundation their father started laying when he opened his first Albuquerque restaurant in 1972. Getting to this point also makes him feel grateful. Im proud of our employees that have been with us for a long time. Im proud of our regulars who keep on supporting us. Theyre a godsend; without them, we wouldnt be around, Burgarello said. As is customary, the Private 100 is Albuquerque-centric. Most companies that made it call Albuquerque home, though there are representatives from Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Alamogordo and Ruidoso. Companies headquartered in New Mexico apply for the New Mexico Private 100. The 100 with the highest revenue make the final list. The top three companies last year also landed up there again, albeit in a slightly different order. Summit Electric Supply remains No. 1, though Ernest Health (No. 2) and Garcia Automotive Group (No. 3) have swapped spots this year. While none cracked the top three, construction and real estate companies have the highest concentration, with a total of 29 spots. Jaynes Corp. at No. 5 leads the way in that sector; 11 other firms landed in the top 30. Many of them are stalwarts that have made the Private 100 more years than some of the lists younger companies have been in existence. Nearly a quarter (24) of this years companies started in 2000 or later. This years Private 100 list provides a good mix of companies in our state some have been around for many years and have formed the backbone of New Mexicos economy, while others are new to the list and provide evidence that the entrepreneurial community is developing, said Modrall Sperling president Walter Stern. PRIVATE100-2016-JD_2016_10_31 by Albuquerque Journal on Scribd Home rule urban charter amendment Yes Much of the daily governing and business of Bernalillo County is not codified anywhere but in practice. Thats because the county, the most populous in the state, lacks a home-rule charter. Instead, the county has to turn to the state for guidance, delaying such mundane decisions as procurement and placing an undue burden on the businesses seeking to work with the county. The proposed home-rule charter would streamline operations and allow the county to operate much like the city, which has its own municipal charter. It would leave the structure of county government the same, and any subsequent changes would have to go to voters. The proposed charter also nails down how the county will handle its investments a huge issue after a previous treasurers strategy cost the county $17 million clarifies the responsibilities of the county manager (think CEO) and the county commission (think board of directors), lays out that there is an ethical code of conduct to be followed, a transparency portal to be sustained, and that the operating budget will be available for public review and presented in a public hearing. A bonus feature of adopting an urban charter is that should voters ever again get the chance to combine their duplicative Albuquerque city and Bernalillo County governments, its apparently much easier to join two entities that are governed by charter. The Journal recommends voters approve a home-rule urban charter for Bernalillo County. County Bonds Yes on all Bernalillo County voters are being asked to approve $36.255 million in bonds to maintain and improve the nuts and bolts of county government. Approval will not increase taxes because these will replace bonds that are being retired, and while rejecting the package would save the owner of a $100,000 home around $7 a year in property taxes, spending that $7.39 a year will get county residents real bang for their bucks as the county portion is being leveraged to get more than $5 million in matching federal funds. 1. Library: These $1.5 million in bonds are the only source of funding for library materials; the countys 18 libraries have 350,000 active members and recorded two million visits in a year. 2. Public Safety and other public buildings: These $8.35 million bonds are the last infusion of funding for a new animal shelter, will upgrade fire stations in the North Valley and East Mountains, make more of the countys 140 buildings ADA compliant, and update the law enforcement radio system, among projects. 3. Parks and Recreation: Among projects, these $5.45 million in bonds will improve the South Valley aquatics facility and Paradise Hills pool; ball fields at Tom Tenorio Park, South Valley and East Mountain Little Leagues; and replace a main water line at the Raymond G. Sanchez Community Center. 4. Transportation: Among projects, these $12.65 million in bonds will extend four lanes of Sunport Boulevard from Broadway to Interstate 25; rebuild Bridge Boulevard from Coors to Isleta; improve Second and Valle del oro Trail from Rio Bravo to Salida Sandia; and pave gravel/dirt roads in Districts 1, 4 and 5. 5. Storm Drainage and Utilities: Among projects, these $5.8 million in bonds will target sewer infrastructure on North Edith, road and storm drain improvements on Barcelona and Sunset roads, and install fiber optics as an essential county utility. 6. Public Housing: These $2.5 million in bonds will complement the tiny houses program by supplying funding for land purchases as well as help renovate county-owned rental units. The Journal recommends voters invest in their county infrastructure and approve all county bonds. AMAFCA bonds Yes The Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority is asking voters to approve $25 million in general obligation bonds to pay for capital projects throughout its district, which includes most of the developed areas of Bernalillo County, but not the East Mountains. AMAFCA builds, manages and maintains flood control and storm water facilities. Projects bond proceeds would go toward include a diversion channel between Unser and 98th Street to protect westbound lanes of I-40, a South Valley flood reduction project near Rio Grande High School, and a structure to clean debris from storm water and deliver it into the Rio Grande at the Valle de Oro Wildlife Refuge in the far South Valley. Approving the bonds would not raise taxes because other bonds would be retired. The Journal recommends voters approve the AMAFCA bonds. 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. Theres no question the University of New Mexico Hospital is the No. 1 provider of critical medical care in the state. It treats some 90,000 patients in its Emergency Department and more than 450,000 outpatients annually. It houses the states only Level I trauma center, where the most critical of emergency patients from around the state are treated. It offers behavioral health, pediatric and surgical specialty programs, a mental health hospital, a childrens hospital and noted cancer care center. It brings in $160 million a year from biomedical research and is the states only teaching hospital. Those are all good reasons Bernalillo County voters should approve another eight-year period for a property tax that has supported the hospital since a 1952 agreement was reached with the county. This mill levy is 6.4 mills per $1,000 in taxable property value, which costs the owner of a median-priced $195,000 house $416 a year in taxes. UNMH accounts for the third largest chunk of property taxes for Bernalillo County taxpayers. The levy generates about $94 million in revenue, or nearly 10 percent of the hospitals $1 billion budget. Mill levy money and reimbursements from Medicaid, Medicare, private insurers and other sources together are used for operations and maintenance for the hospital and its clinics, While some have long viewed the mill levy as only for indigent care, UNMH officials say it has always been designated for operations and maintenance. That said, with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and the expansion of Medicaid adding about 300,000 newly insured people statewide, the level of uninsured people has dropped from about 23 percent of the hospitals patients to about 7 percent to 12 percent. Regardless, UNMH officials claim that in FY 2016, the uncompensated care was still about $74 million. Thats down from about $84.5 million in FY 2015. That uncompensated care breaks down into a number of categories. Some of the uncompensated care comes from bad debt by people who cant afford the high deductibles under their Obamacare policies. Millions more comes from what hospital officials say is Medicaid underpayment they claim Medicaid covers only about 80 percent of the cost of care. Medical services provided to people who are here illegally and therefore ineligible for Medicaid or Obamacare insurance policy subsidies account for millions more. From a humanitarian and legal standpoint, they are treated. But while the federal government says it is not providing health care for illegal immigrants, Bernalillo County taxpayers, in addition to paying for Medicaid underpayments, are helping pay for these patients hospital bills through this levy. Meanwhile, to meet the uptick in demand caused by the surge in people covered by Medicaid or Obamacare policies, UNMH has added nine additional doctors and 70 nurses over the past two years. Meanwhile, costs for salaries, medications and general operations continue to rise. Compounding the health care issue is the uncertainty about Obamacare, which is experiencing huge increases in premiums, driving some providers out of the system and leaving many with health insurance they cant afford to use because of high deductibles. The Journal recommends voters renew this levy for another eight years. But beyond that, this system needs to be fixed and the levy reduced or eliminated because it has become a perpetual tax that places an unfair burden on Bernalillo County taxpayers when it is a state and federal government problem. 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. Imagine that you are the victim of identity theft. Your wallet, credit cards, and IDs have been stolen. Then the thief who stole your identity commits another crime, a felony. Hes arrested, and uses your identification information. He says hes you. You receive a criminal summons in the mail because he gave the police your address. Now you have criminal charges pending against you, for a crime you didnt commit. You explain all of this to the DA. You prove that you didnt commit any crime, and that your identity was stolen by the person who did. The case against you is dismissed and youre cleared of any wrongdoing. But your name is still listed on court records as the defendant in a criminal case. Although you werent convicted, and youre not a felon, this damaging information is publicly available, raising doubts as to what kind of person you are. Anyone with an internet connection can quickly and easily pull up this prejudicial information. If youre applying for a job, this information could prevent you from getting an interview. And it will be on your record forever, through no fault of your own. Your good name has been tarnished, even though you didnt do anything wrong. In fact, you were the victim of a crime, not the perpetrator. Yet the public record shows that you were criminally charged with a felony. This scenario may sound far-fetched. But its not. It has happened here in Albuquerque. The twin horror of identity theft and then being wrongfully accused of a crime you did not commit happened to a former client of mine. Luckily, the judge saw the wisdom of expunging the record, and we succeeded in getting these unwarranted charges expunged. The common-sense outcome that was available to my client would be barred by the approach recently proposed by an editorial published by the Albuquerque Journal (Oct. 19). The Journals editorial overemphasizes the public good of access to court and arrest records, while ignoring the legitimate interest of individuals in clearing their name and protecting their privacy. The Journal refers to these as criminal records as if being accused of crime makes you a criminal. But if youre wrongfully or erroneously accused, you are not a criminal. The Journals approach erodes a fundamental tenet of the American judicial system: that you are innocent until proven guilty. Rather, the Journal laments the possibility that the public might not know if someone who applies for a public position or runs for office had arrests for various crimes that didnt result in convictions. A crime that does not result in a conviction is not a crime. Thats what the presumption of innocence means. Today, anyone with an internet connection can easily access records in a few seconds. Erroneous and wrongful allegations can be found quickly, raising new questions about the balance between the publics right to know and an individuals right to privacy questions that a previous generation did not confront. In recent years, New Mexicos elected representatives and senators have repeatedly embraced common-sense reforms to protect ones reputation and good name. Many other states, including Texas, already have expungement laws that offer robust protection against harmful dissemination of inaccurate court and arrest records. Even in those states without expungement laws, many allow their judges to make a case-by-case determination if expungement is appropriate given the facts of each particular case. New Mexicos judges, who exercise judgment and discretion across a broad spectrum of circumstances on a daily basis should be empowered to do the right thing when the facts warrant it. The Journals one-size-fits-all approach, if adopted, would strip the courts of their power to decide cases on the facts and force many of us to live under the dark shadow cast by a wrongful arrest, even when there is no question that the police and prosecutor accused the wrong person. Scott Davidson is a member of the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association. Serving as president of the Museum of New Mexico Board of Regents is one of the great honors of my life and is a culmination of my lifelong love and devotion to our great state and its cultural treasures. So it is after serious introspection that I feel the need to sound the alarm about the extremely precarious budgetary situation of our state Department of Cultural Affairs. I respect the work of our governor and our state legislators and join many in thanking them for their difficult work during the special session. We all know the impossible challenges our state faces due to the severe downturn in oil and gas revenues. Painful choices have been made and will continue to be made. With the implementation of new budget cuts, Cultural Affairs is looking at one of the largest cuts in state government a nearly 12 percent reduction from last year. For this agency, whose budgets were extremely reduced in the 2009 recession, this will result in serious reductions in services and the possible loss of federal funding. This is currently $3 million for arts, preservation and library services across the state. Operations will be drastically impacted and possible closures within the museum system may become a reality. Our museums face losing their accreditation, a national designation of distinction, which allows important collections from around the world to visit our state. Public and tribal libraries across New Mexico face the potential for dramatic cuts in state funding. Educational programs in history, science, arts and culture face unprecedented reductions or elimination. Communities struggling to bring vitality and commerce back to their Main Streets through preservation of historic properties and the celebration of cultural activities face loss of funding and support. I sincerely believe our states successes stem from our diversity and our creativity, a unique combination that promotes education and strengthens business. From the santero to the scientist, the farmer to the space explorer, the archaeologist to the entrepreneur, creative inquiry is at the root of all that makes New Mexico unique. We cannot afford to lose our cultural heritage, an important economic and tourism driver, making New Mexico such a special place to live and visit. We must bring our creative energies to the fore to ensure adequate funding for Cultural Affairs so we can continue to uphold our responsibility to preserve our history and protect our cultural treasures. Mother Nature gave New Mexico almost everything, except water. In the Land of Enchantment, we have less surface water than any other state. And our natural water supply is evaporating as global warming intensifies the long-term drought in the Southwest. But Mother Nature is not our main problem. If were smart and resourceful, we can cope with Mother Nature, but we cannot survive human error. In the next five years, New Mexico is on track to lose its remaining water supply. We are losing our water in the courtroom because of actions by former Gov. Bill Richardson and current Attorney General Hector Balderas. The first courtroom disaster is happening in the Supreme Court of the United States, where the state of Texas is suing the state of New Mexico for more water from the Rio Grande. Texas is claiming that New Mexico has not met its legal obligation to provide water to Texas under the Rio Grande Compact of 1938. Texas is claiming that New Mexico is grabbing water released from Elephant Butte Reservoir before the water reaches Texas. To defend against Texas, Balderas argued that it makes no difference whether the water actually reaches Texas, so long as it is released from Elephant Butte Reservoir, 125 miles up the Rio Grande. On June 28, the Supreme Courts Special Master rejected this argument, calling it stunted. The Special Master ruled that the Rio Grande Compact would mean nothing if New Mexico delivers water to the Rio Grande Project at Elephant Butte Reservoir and then immediately grabs it back upon release from the Reservoir. The Special Master has a good point: The AGs argument makes no sense. Therefore, its now time for New Mexico to change strategies in this case. The New Mexico Legislature has appropriated $13.5 million for litigating with Texas, but this money is being wasted. No amount of money can rescue a legal argument that is intrinsically stupid. The second courtroom disaster is unfolding in the state courts in New Mexico. In late 2010, just weeks before he left office, Richardson signed an agreement that would give the Navajo Nation 640,000 acre-feet of water every year from the San Juan River. That is a monstrous amount of water, more than six times the amount used by the Albuquerque metropolitan area. Most of this water is earmarked for the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project, but that is not where the water would eventually go. If the Navajo Nation is awarded this water, then the tribe can export it to other states. New Mexico lost this legal battle in the 1980s, when the federal courts ruled that water is an article of interstate commerce. In a sense, water is no different than oil and gas New Mexico cannot prevent it from being exported. Its easy for the Navajo Nation to export the water just leave it in the San Juan River. The water will flow down to the Colorado River, where Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas, Nev., have their aqueducts ready and waiting. If that happens, then the water supply to Albuquerque and Santa Fe will come up short, because our cities get water from the San Juan through the San Juan-Chama project. Balderas is arguing in favor of the Richardson-Navajo deal, and so far Balderas has prevailed. The ultimate decision will be made in the New Mexico Court of Appeals and the New Mexico Supreme Court. So we are facing twin courtroom disasters. New Mexicos very survival is at stake, but dont blame Mother Nature, blame human errors in state government. How come the public doesnt know about this? Welcome to New Mexico were asleep at the switch. Luckily, we can correct these human errors before they become fatal, if we act quickly. In fairness to Balderas, he inherited these problems from the Richardson era, but as AG he has the power to change course before its too late. Victor Marshall is a former state senator for Albuquerque. He represents water users on the San Juan River. For over 20 years, the Albuquerque Journal has celebrated New Mexicos top 100 private companies headquartered here in the state, and Bank of America Merrill Lynch is once again proud to be a partner to bring well-deserved attention and recognition to these firms, said Paul Mondragon, New Mexico president for Bank of America. The list of honorees once again demonstrates the growing diversity of New Mexicos private sector, and serves as a reminder of the private sectors critical impact on local jobs and the economy, Mondragon said. Bank of America has one clear purpose to make financial lives better. We do this based on shared success, meaning that, when our clients and local communities succeed, we will succeed. From supporting small businesses to commercial companies, weve already provided over $17 million in lending and credit to New Mexico businesses so far this year, reflecting the economic success, optimism and growth happening statewide. Bank of America has served New Mexico for 90 years, and is a statewide leader in personal banking, strategic investments and corporate social responsibility. Bank of America has a broad network of banking centers, ATMs and innovative technology to meet the banking needs of consumers. This includes 26 banking centers and a national customer service center in Rio Rancho that employees more than 300 local residents. From small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, Bank of America Merrill Lynch has dedicated teams to connect businesses with the solutions they need to compete and ultimately thrive both locally and globally. In the first half of 2016, the company delivered more than $17 million in new credit to businesses in New Mexico. Merrill Lynch Wealth Management has six offices in New Mexico, including locations in Albuquerque, Hobbs, Las Cruces, Roswell and Santa Fe. Merrill Lynch Wealth Management provides comprehensive, strategic wealth-management solutions to individuals, families and businesses. Its services include portfolio management, asset protection and tax minimization, all designed to help clients manage their unique financial challenges. Just as Bank of America prioritizes everyday financial needs, the company invests back into New Mexico. In 2016, Bank of America will give nearly a half-million dollars to nonprofits across the state and Bank of America employees will volunteer more than 5,000 hours of time to local causes. Sheilah Garcia presides over a vast car empire one with an often-changing composition. Today, Garcia Automotive Group encompasses 15 franchises across 13 locations in Albuquerque, Santa Fe and El Paso, Texas. But tomorrow, who knows? The Garcia family business which includes a second generation of company principals in brothers Ed, Toby and Carlos has bought or sold about 30 dealerships in the past 20 years alone. As we say, if were not buying, selling or trading, we might as well be dead,' Carlos says, attributing the business style to his late father, Julian. The method has worked well for Garcia, which ranks No. 3 on this years Private 100. But there was a time when just selling a single car was a triumph. Julian, who had previously run a salvage yard with his father, acquired his first new-car franchise in 1967. He bought what he could afford, bucking convention and investing in Toyota before the Japanese automaker had risen to stateside prominence. His peers around Albuquerque watched with skepticism. The first month in business, they only sold one car, Carlos Garcia says. To my grandma. But the Garcias bet on the small, fuel-efficient brand paid off during the ensuing energy crisis. They later added a Honda dealership, then other brands. Sheilah, a former school teacher and mother of five, took over when Julian died in 1984. And her sons who had grown up cleaning cars and pulling weeds around the lots eventually joined the business themselves. Its all they ever wanted to do from the time they were little kids, says Sheilah, company president. It was certainly self-motivated; it didnt come from me. I didnt try to discourage them, but I didnt push them into it. Customers can now turn to Garcias whether seeking a $12,000 smart car or a $300,000-plus Mercedes-Benz, a Subaru hatchback or even a Cadillac though not a new Toyota since the company sold their original dealership in the 1990s. Carlos Garcia says representing so many brands allows the family to better notice and respond to larger industry trends, but he and Sheilah both credit customer satisfaction for their long-term success. Better than half the customers shopping at the Garcias longest-held stores have bought from the family before, Carlos says. Thats pretty cool when every other person who comes in the door, we know, he says. When Sen. Jeff Bingaman was retiring from Congress four years ago, he went to the Senate floor to deliver a customary farewell address. During his speech, the New Mexico Democrat praised the Affordable Care Act, now commonly referred to as Obamacare. Bingaman had served on the so-called Gang of Six, senators who crafted the early framework of Obamacare in the summer of 2009, and when he said farewell to his colleagues during his 2012 floor speech, he insisted the law had been unfairly maligned and could be fixed. Its a position the New Mexico Democrat still holds today, even as some insurance providers flee the Affordable Care Acts exchanges and others are announcing average premium hikes of 25 percent. Nearly half of Americans view the law unfavorably six years after its passage, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll in September. Bingaman, who served 30 years in Congress, said any major new law eventually needs tweaking and Obamacare is no different. Thats what normally would happen during the first six years of any major piece of legislation, he said during a telephone interview last week. The problem has been that they cant make changes because the drumbeat for repeal (by some not all Republicans in Congress) continues. I hope it ends in the next Congress and I hope they can work on a bipartisan set of changes. The Republican-led charge to repeal and replace Obamacare does, indeed, continue. GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump called for repeal just last week. But the pressure could start to recede if Democrat Hillary Clinton wins the presidential election. As Bingaman pointed out, there are two major parts of Obamacare the expansion of Medicaid (the health system for the poor) and the creation of exchanges and federal subsidies to provide health insurance for others. New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez agreed to expand Medicaid under the new law an unpopular decision in some Republican quarters at the time. But more than a quarter million additional low-income residents in New Mexico have since gained health coverage. Bingaman said as far as Obamacare goes, the Medicaid expansion has had the biggest impact on our state by far which I think is a major step forward. But he conceded Obamacare has been less effective at luring others who are uninsured, but dont qualify for Medicaid, to buy private health care insurance under the ACA exchanges. Thats an area we didnt do nearly enough on, Bingaman said. The other part is that we dont have enough competition. Bingaman said hed like to see the next Congress get to work negotiating fixes to Obamacare. He also said that despite the political rhetoric, repealing Obamacare isnt a viable option. I dont think it will be repealed if Donald Trump is elected, he said. The reality is youve got 20 million people who are currently receiving health care as a result of provisions in the act. This idea of repealing the act theres got to be a real plan B as to what you do with those 20 million people. Brad Allen and Lance Sigmon hit the ground running when they left Roger Cox & Associates five years ago to form their own real estate brokerage, property management and investment company. With 10 kids between them, the partners had a lot of mouths to feed and were very motivated not only to provide for their families, but also to help themselves and others advance personally and professionally. Five years later, the partners now have 64 employees on the payroll and manage or own 1 million square feet of retail, office, multi-family, hotel and industrial space in New Mexico with a value of $100 million. Allen and Sigmon got started during the most challenging of times when the commercial real estate market was just starting to show a pulse after the worst effects of the recession. They launched their business when three basic measures of commercial real estate health property values, vacancy and leases rates had decreased by double digits. When you are able to get through those, you learn from them and it makes you more adept at handling other bad cycles, said Allen, adding the company picked up distressed properties, bidding on foreclosed real estate or defaulted loans, improving them and leasing them. Sigmon credits Allen for his fiscal savvy. Hes a saver, he said of his partner, who makes sure projects are underwritten and financed with the most advantageous terms and rates. As the company added to its portfolio, the partners bought a corporate headquarters and staffed up. We are rarely sellers; we are typically buy-and-hold guys, said Allen, who detailed a busy year, which included the sale of a 150,000-square-foot industrial property in Rio Rancho that had been listed for $8.2 million. At some point (as an investor), you take those funds and redeploy them elsewhere where the growth potential is higher, he said. We are actively looking at other opportunities, preferably the purchase of another office-warehouse type of product, he said of the rest of the companys partners, which includes Robert Powell and Jeff Martinez. The firm is taking a broad approach as investors and developers. Total Management Systems and Allen Sigmon signed an agreement in April with Aggie Development Inc. to build and run a four-story, 122-room hotel on 2.7 acres of university land next to the Las Cruces Convention Center. Total Management also worked with partners from Allen Sigmon in 2015 to finish and open the Home2 Suites by the Hilton hotel near the Big-I. It takes more than two people to be successful in this business, to have a vision and carry it out, said Sigmon. Its all about having the right people in the right seats, he said, adding the duo handpicked every single employee from the maintenance workers at the hotels to project managers, sales and leasing reps, and accounting staffers. While the team wouldnt look askance at opportunities in adjacent states, New Mexico investments and developments clearly will remain the priority. Most of our partners are local, said Allen. We want to help grow New Mexico as much as possible. SO WHAT IS THE MINIMUM SPEED ON I-40? A reader reports being ticketed for doing 55 mph in a 65 mph zone. Bernadette Bell, public relations officer for the New Mexico Department of Transportation, cites New Mexico Statute 66-7-305, Minimum speed regulation, which says a person shall not drive a motor vehicle at such a slow speed as to impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic except when reduced speed is necessary for safe operation or to be in compliance with law. Bell says there is no set minimum. Rather, the minimum speed is one that does not impede traffic moving at a normal and reasonable rate. WHY ARE ILLEGAL FLEA MARKETS ALLOWED? Mizbaca1971 asks that in an email referring to the illegal flea markets and/or yard sales set up at the corner of Bridge and Unser. Most times these people have no business license to be operating a for-profit market. These markets set up on the corner and sell their miscellaneous goods. They are an eyesore on the community and, I feel, bring down the value of the area. I call the Albuquerque Police Department on a weekly basis to complain about these markets. Melissa Perez, public information officer with the citys Planning Department, says this would fall under both Code Enforcement (primary) and APD. The property described looks to be a privately owned vacant lot on the northeast corner of Bridge and Unser. The Code Enforcement Division can enforce on private property by sending an inspector. If we find the vendors selling on the property, we will explain to them that it is not allowed and ask them to leave. We can then also send the property owner a notice of violation for the activity and ask them to put an end to it. However, it is likely that the property owner is unaware of what is taking place. Short of developing the vacant land or fencing it off with No Trespassing signs, there will be little the property owner can do to prevent this type of activity. Please note that we cannot ticket or fine the vendors. Perez adds that citizens are encouraged to call 311 with the exact location cross streets and corner location would be sufficient in cases like this and ask to have a Code Enforcement Inspector dispatched to check for violations. APD may also respond, as they have been doing. HOW CAN I GET AN ABANDONED CAR REMOVED? Ray Scheffler reports in an email there has been an abandoned Subaru station wagon at 4212 Coal Ave SE for more than two months. The car sits at a closed gas station. My neighbors and I have reported the vehicle multiple times per week and have tried contacting the property management. Ray says the car was in decent condition when it was abandoned, but it has turned into a festering eyesore that is attracting crime to the neighborhood. Perez says this matter would fall under the Code Enforcement Division of the Planning Department as its an inoperative vehicle on private property. Our team has been working on this matter since early August. In fact, our inspector sent the property owner a pre-criminal summons warning notice for the inoperative vehicle. The property owner ha(d) until Sept. 1 to come into compliance. Which according to city code means store inoperative vehicle(s) inside a building; repair inoperative vehicle(s) or remove inoperative vehicle(s) from property. Perez reports the inspector for this property let me know that the inoperative vehicle has (since) been removed by the property owner. Had that not happened, the city would have filed a criminal complaint with Metropolitan Court, where the case (would) be scheduled to be heard before a judge. Assistant editorial page editor DVal Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays. Reach her at 823-3858; road@abqjournal.com; or P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, N.M. 87103. The New Mexico Public Education Department will get a total of $7 million from the federal government to help turn around low-performing schools the largest such allocation the state has received. Last week, the U.S. Department of Education announced that PED would be awarded $3.17 million in the second round of School Improvement Grants, added to $3.86 million from the first round in August. Its a substantial funding boost. The state received about $4 million in SIG grants during the 2009, 2010 and 2011 fiscal years. New Mexico Education Secretary Hanna Skandera said she is particularly proud because her department won the $7 million by showing results in struggling schools. To me, whats exciting about it is that New Mexico is one of few states to get this award for investing in a proven state-developed model, she said. Were excited because we said all along that our schools and our districts that are embracing these opportunities to turn schools around are seeing incredible results. In the coming months, PED will accept applications from more than 80 low-performing New Mexico schools that qualify for SIG money. Five will receive grants to implement data-driven improvement methods, such as extended school days or professional development programs. Skandera highlighted one of these programs, Principals Pursuing Excellence, which provides two years of mentorship to principals from struggling schools. The model was developed at the University of Virginia, and PED reports that it has produced good results. We are doubling down on what works, Skandera said. This is a great opportunity for New Mexico to shine. Nationwide, schools that receive SIG money have made gains in graduation rates and mathematics and reading test scores. Since 2009, the SIG program has invested over $7 billion to transform more than 1,800 of the countrys lowest performing schools, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Education. She had been the quiet one, the one everybody knew yet no one really knew back in our school days. Recent news, she said, had compelled her to reach out to me more than four decades later to deliver a letter she hoped might be of some use in the Journal. She wanted to talk about something few had known back in our younger years, something that may have accounted for her shyness at school. Staying quiet, she explained, had been how she had coped with years of sexual assault. But she was done with being quiet. Not all victims of sexual abuse die but the effects can last a lifetime, she wrote in her letter. The long-term effects are trouble trusting others, post-traumatic stress disorder, flashbacks, nightmares, severe anxiety, loss of interest, prolonged sadness, feelings of hopelessness, unexplained crying, depression, disassociation, drug addiction, anger, distrust and rejection. I know this to be true because I was a victim myself and I suffered from many of these things throughout my life. She signed her letter Victim in Albuquerque. She showed up at the Journal after weeks of stories had appeared in our paper about the gruesome sexual assault and slayings of two children in New Mexico. Those stories had triggered long-buried memories and emotions within her. It had brought her to her knees and then to her feet to stand up not just for herself but for the countless other victims of sexual assault. And then came Donald Trump. The release in October of a 2005 tape in which the Republican presidential candidate bragged about how he could grab, grope and kiss beautiful women because he was a star opened the floodgates for sexual assault survivors, many who took to social media to share their stories and bare their scars. I wrote about what I called the groundswell of a sisterhood seeking its power and political clout in an Oct. 14 column. I heard from those who found the column political and biased, which was not my intention, and from survivors like my former classmate. Survivors also reached out in larger than usual numbers to Cindy Anderson, executive director and founder of Peopleworks-NM, a behavioral health counseling agency in Rio Rancho specializing in services for older adults since 2009. The incidents disclosed by her clients, some well into their 70s and 80s, had been buried for decades, but the video and its continuing aftermath had brought the memories to the surface. When you have these kinds of remarks being made, it can be a trigger to past trauma, Anderson said. Some are experiencing a late onset of post-traumatic stress disorder after they reconnect to that past trauma. And now they are taking the time to really process what happened to them. I asked Anderson as some in your letters asked me why this time and these allegations seem to be affecting women so much more than the allegations of sexual impropriety that arose against then-President Bill Clinton during his years in office. That, she speculates, is because of the way Trump and his surrogates have dismissed what was said on the video as locker room talk or boy talk and how they have further demeaned women who have accused Trump of sexual assault and deplorable conduct by implying they are liars, likely to be sued and not attractive enough to be sexually assaulted. Words, she said, matter. Bill Clinton, I think, was not talking about his behaviors, she said. I did not hear him make nasty remarks of women and their bodies. These insults on womens bodies, for some, gives that sensation of being personally attacked. His behavior may have been inappropriate, but his words were not. The ease with which women are connecting with each other on social media has also contributed both to the increased outrage against sexual assault no matter who commits it and the opportunity to begin the healing process. We need to cry, and I think the communal crying and wailing and processing of trauma is very necessary, she said. Being listened to, being told I am sorry for what happened to you, is very healing. So to my classmate and to all of you who shared your stories, I am sorry for what happened to you. Im still listening. Dont stay quiet. UpFront is a daily front-page news and opinion column. Comment directly to Joline at 823-3603, jkrueger@abqjournal.com or follow her on Twitter @jolinegkg. Go to www.abqjournal.com/letters/new to submit a letter to the editor. Begin to heal For women and men dealing with the trauma of sexual assault, social worker Cindy Anderson recommends therapy, a trusted friend and the books The Courage to Heal by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis and Waking the Tiger by Peter A. Levine. PLAINVILLE, Conn. Democrats are finding it tricky to run against Dr. William Petit. Petit, a 60-year-old Republican, became a national figure after surviving a 2007 home invasion in Cheshire in which his wife, Jennifer, and two daughters, 17-year-old Hayley and 11-year-old Michaela, were murdered. Hes now running for Connecticuts state House from his hometown of Plainville, his first time seeking public office. Hes a symbol for being tough on crime, is a respected family doctor in the community and is a sympathetic candidate because of the horror he lived through. He is a gift to Republicans and a nightmare for the opposition, said Scott McLean, a political science professor at Quinnipiac University. Its hard to paint him as a villain. You cant go negative against a candidate like this. Democrats found that out this past week when a political action committee put Petits name on an internet advertisement, linking him to presidential candidate Donald Trump. The ad, identical to those run against other GOP candidates across the state, read: Stop Donald Trump and Republican William Petits attacks on women and families. Republicans immediately pounced on it as disgusting. Even his opponent, 11-term Democratic incumbent Betty Boukus, said she was horrified. The ad was pulled and the stat union leader responsible for approving it resigned. They are incredibly unintelligent, Petit said of those that authorized the ad. They did absolutely no research. They dont know anything about me. Republicans began to approach Petit about seeking public office after he testified against the eventual repeal of capital punishment in Connecticut, and spoke out against the state Supreme Court decision that removed the death penalty for those already sentenced, including the two men who killed his family. But he says he has no plans to try and revive Connecticuts death penalty, and is running for the states legislature as a fiscal conservative, not a crusading crime victim. Id be happy to spearhead anything in victims rights, he said. We should have some programs for offenders, but we have way too many in comparison with what we have for people who are victims. But he said his real fight will be to control state spending, bring down the debt and try to focus the legislature on long-term fiscal planning rather than two-year budgets. The problem is that when people nationally write about this, they let me talk about the campaign for 45 minutes and then the article comes out, and its about the tragedy, he said, referring to stories written about his past. Boukus, the powerful House chair of the legislatures bonding subcommittee, said she has focused her campaign on what she can do for the district in central Connecticut and has nothing bad to say about Petit. She doesnt mention him while campaigning. Mr. Petit is a well-known figure, but locally, so am I, she said. Ive said his parents should be very proud. That is likely the only tact to take in running against such a sympathetic figure, said McLean. The advertisement, he said, now prevents Boukus from even politely linking Trump and Petit. Petit has not said whether he will vote for Trump, saying that is a decision he likely will make while in the booth, but he said he wont support Hillary Clinton. He said that shouldnt be a reason for people to vote for or against him. You really need to make a decision based on local issues, things that affect you, he said. McLean said Petit has to walk that line and also be careful not to attack the 73-year-old Boukus in order to maintain his own image. We might actually have political nirvana, where we have two candidates who really only want to talk about the issues and not trash each other, he said. Petit said he supports term limits and has no plans to make a career of politics, though he notes there is a family tradition of public service. His father served for 13 years on the Plainville town council and was on the school board and Connecticut Republican State Central Committee. His mother served on local library and state tourism boards. His uncle was on the town council. His brother and nephew serve on local zoning committees. Petit turned down overtures several years ago to become a Congressional candidate. At the time he was newly re-married with a baby on the way. But he would not rule out an eventual run for higher office. I have to win this first, he said. Its one day at a time, because you never know when lightning is going to strike in your life and your life is going to change in ways that you cant imagine. As James Glover listened to his grandfathers stories about dismantling German bombs in England during World War II, he never imagined he would follow the same path. While his grandfather disassembled Luftwaffe bombs while serving in the British army, James Glover, an environmental scientist, uses his civilian expertise to remove bombs and missiles from FUD (formerly used defense) sites used by the U.S. military. The work is performed under the Native American Lands Environmental Mitigation Program (NALEMP). This year, weve cleared approximately 2,000 acres of land across various tribal entities, and we have removed about 15,000 pounds of munitions, said Glover, project manager at Britannia Environmental Consulting in Albuquerque. His work spans many counties and regions across New Mexico. Between Ladron Peak (about 50 miles southwest of Albuquerque) and Cochiti Lake (in Sandoval County), there are about 25 precision bombing ranges used by the military during World War II. Many sites are on Native American lands, while others are in open spaces or areas belonging to private landowners. Glover and teams of highly trained UXO (unexploded ordnance) technicians scour vast areas on foot to probe for bombs that have been lying dormant for more than 70 years since the end of the war. The acre-by-acre searches are painstaking, but necessary to prevent disaster. Weve come across many (bombs) that are still live. We do controlled explosions on those munitions, Glover said. They go with a big bang. Educating the public Glover says the bombs are a major safety issue, especially for Native American tribes. Its their land. Its their backyard. They use it, Glover said, explaining that Native Americans use open areas for hunting and tribal activities, such as gathering wood and medicines. An explosion from a small, 2-foot-long shell can release shards of blistering hot shrapnel for 2,500 feet in all directions. The flying metal fragments are razor sharp. Some of these have upwards of 15 to 20 pounds worth of high explosives inside, with a fuse on the front, Glover said. That is enough to vaporize a person standing next to an accidentally detonated shell, he said. Theyre powerful munitions. Theyre extremely dangerous. Fortunately, nobodys been injured that I know of to date, Glover said. But there are still a lot of impacts out there that could cause a problem. Types of bombs New Mexico was a prime military testing ground due to its large, open wilderness. There are many varieties of bombs and explosives still present, which correspond to U.S. military objectives during the war, according to Glover. The military created many targets. Some are concentric circles like bulls-eyes marked with lime or tar. Other dummy targets included battleship shapes, truck convoys or powerhouse structures. Bombers were sent to ranges to strike various targets and to hit certain percentages to meet military requirements. Many of the dropped bombs did not detonate, resulting in hundreds of unexploded weapons lying in deserts and mountains, or buried in shallow graves. A common type is a sand bomb, created with thin metal and filled with sand and gravel. This type contains a detonation device rigged to cause explosions of powder using a shotgun shell-type cartridge charge. Theyre obviously dangerous, but they are the least dangerous type that we come across, Glover said of the sand bombs. A bigger threat is variable-time (VT) fuse missiles, developed to combat Japanese kamikaze planes that attacked American warships. U.S. Navy crews found it difficult to destroy the small and agile Japanese aircraft, needing to score direct hits for the shells to detonate. For every plane they took down, they had to fire about 2,400 rounds, Glover said. Were talking big shells here. In response, America developed VT fuses an early form of smart technology that allowed missiles to sense planes and explode at certain distances, releasing shrapnel. The VT fuses reduced the average number of fired shells to 600, a four-fold increase in target success. Today, munitions fitted with VT fuses lie scattered around the mountains near Albuquerque. Some are buried, while many others have surfaced through erosion. Most of them are just sitting there on the ground, Glover said. Other bombs must be excavated. It is dangerous work. Although he has handled many harmless munitions, Glover never takes chances. One unnecessary risk, he says, can be deadly. Its extremely rewarding to see what we pull out of specific areas at the end of a project, said Glover, like 12,000 pounds worth of munitions debris from one area at a time. Glover saves empty munitions shells to use for training purposes and community outreach. He visits tribal communities and other areas to show people what the bombs look like and educates them about how to stay safe. He teaches people to remember three golden Rs, should they ever encounter a bomb or military device. The first R is being able to recognize what you see as something dangerous; the second R is retreat: move away, dont touch it, dont pick it up or disturb it in any way; and the third R is to report it,' Glover said, adding that tribal governments and Kirtland Air Force Base can deploy explosive ordnance teams to remove such hazards. When asked why he is so dedicated to this dangerous work, Glover stated his mission is to restore nature and protect people. Its making the land safe, he said. Its returning the areas back to their natural, pristine beauty. He finds relief knowing that Native Americans can use open areas free of danger. Its good to see that theyre safe in their land, said Glover. Its the same for anybody. Everybody should be safe in where they go and what they do. The case for Planet Nine is growing. Two new findings presented at a planetary science meeting in Pasadena, Calif., have uncovered hints for the existence of this distant, mysterious world in the motions of known solar system objects. The results could help astronomers home in on their target, which if it really is out there could fundamentally alter our understanding of the solar system. The hunt for Planet Nine began in earnest in 2014 after astronomers Scott Sheppard and Chadwick Trujillo found 2012 VP113, a planetoid nicknamed Biden. Its closest point to the sun in its orbit is 80 astronomical units that is, 80 times the Earth-Sun distance of 93 million miles. Objects like 2012 VP113 exist far beyond the typical denizens of the Kuiper belt, the icy ring of debris that stretches from Neptunes orbit at 30 AU out to 50 AU (and whose largest member is distant Pluto, sitting around 49 AU). The scientists also noticed that 2012 VP113 and another far-out mini-world named Sedna were making their closest approaches to the sun at similar angles which could mean that something massive but unseen was tugging on both their orbits. Since the scientists could not directly see a planet in the darkness of our solar system, they would have to keep searching for its gravitational fingerprint on the motions of other bodies. Then, early this year, California Institute of Technology scientists Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown found that the paths of half a dozen extremely distant objects seemed to be similarly tilted relative to the plane of the solar system, and that their perihelia their closest points to the sun seemed to cluster together. They estimated that a Planet Nine would weigh about 10 Earth masses and take somewhere from 10,000 to 20,000 years to orbit the sun. Now, a team led by Renu Malhotra, a planetary scientist at the University of Arizona, has examined the orbits of four extreme Kuiper belt objects with the longest-known orbital periods and found an elegant relationship among their orbits: They can be described essentially in simple, whole-number ratios. This suggests that theyre pulled into these resonances by the gravity from an unseen massive object. Malhotra was taken aback after discovering the small integer ratios. It was like, Wow, why hasnt somebody else noticed this before?' she recalled. Malhotras team calculated that such a planetoid would be 10 times the mass of Earth and would orbit the sun roughly every 17,000 years which fits with the Caltech scientists range estimate of 10,000 to 20,000 years. At its farthest point, this planet would lie a whopping 665 astronomical units from the sun. The results were published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters. Meanwhile, Brown and Batygin have found more potential evidence of Planet Nines influence. Their calculations, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal, suggest that the solar systems slight tilt relative to the sun might have been caused by the massive worlds pull. Since the mid-1800s, scientists have wondered why the plane of the solar system the plane in which all the planets orbit is tilted 6 degrees relative to the spin axis of the sun, said lead author Elizabeth Bailey, an astronomer and Ph.D. student at Caltech. Given that Planet Nine is suspected to be circling the sun at an even more extreme angle, the scientists calculated that it could indeed have pulled the planets out of alignment with the sun, causing the 6-degree mismatch. From our vantage point, it looks like its the sun thats tilted; but really its the plane of the planets precessing around the total angular momentum of the solar system, just like a top, she said. Neither study is a slam-dunk case for the planets existence, scientists said, but the evidence continues to mount. The results from both teams were presented at the joint 48th meeting of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society and 11th European Planetary Science Congress in Pasadena. Editors Note: What are the most concentrated pockets of Democratic voters in the state? Where are the Republican pockets? And whats it like to live there? After mapping the states voter registration data, the Journal found that the most concentrated pockets are in rural areas rather than urban neighborhoods. Here is Journal reporter Maggie Shepards report after she visited a couple. THE VIEW FROM THE LEFT Amid the peace, beauty of northern N.M., persistent poverty, job shortages and feelings of abandonment permeate daily life DIXON Welcoming tourists on to the road heading into this tiny community is a half-finished small plywood home covered with chicken wire and tar paper thats gray from years in the sun. Next door is a listing trailer, windows broken out, and an abandoned fruit stand half-buried in the. As the road follows the Rio Grande, a shiny, fairly new BMW convertible sits for sale in a dirt driveway under an old Cottonwood tree, flaming orange as fall and apple season descend on the area. The driveway leads to an old, thick-walled adobe and a vineyard, tended by artists who moved to the area from the coasts in the 1960s and 1970s with a wave of other mostly white hippies seeking the regions exquisite beauty, as local artist Shel Neymark describes the Dixon community. They settled in the solidly Hispanic communities, joining local residents descended from those who had been living in northern New Mexico since the Spanish conquered the area in the 1500s. This is one of the states areas with the most concentrated number of registered Democrats. Clovis Romero, 73, of Taos stands outside the Dixon Cooperative Market recently. Romero grew up in Dixon and visits his 92-year-old mother daily as part of the close family traditions he says live on in the town. (Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal) Filiberto Martinez, 68, stands in his family's historic home in Cordova recently. Martinez, who was born in the home, lives on Social Security and maintains the home with help from relatives. (Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal) A sign along N.M. 68 in Rinconada north of Dixon, one of the state's most heavily Democratic areas, expresses thanks to former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. (Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal) Shel Neymark, from Emubdo, stands in front of a ceramic sculpture of the Rio Embudo drainage on the side of the Dixon Coop market in Dixon on Oct. 17. Neymark moved to the Dixon as part of a wave of artists and others seeking what he calls the "exquisite" beauty of the area. (Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal) The village of Ojo Sarco sits in the middle of what is one of the most concentrated area of registered Democratic voters. (Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal) Prev 1 of 5 Next Many of the residents live in homes on land granted to their ancestors by the king of Spain. Other descendants of land grant recipients sold their land, and among the buyers were the artists and other newcomers looking to bask in the beauty of the area. I dont blame folks for wanting to live there. It is such a beautiful, peaceful area to live in. The view, if youve ever seen it coming off the mountain, the valley, it makes New Mexico what it is: enchanting, said state Sen. Carlos Cisneros, D-Questa. In terms of the topography, its one of the most beautiful areas in the state; the views there are extraordinary. People there, he said, are hardworking, dedicated, committed to the community. Theyre multigeneration folks that have been there since the beginning of time in some cases. Sagging fortunes Jobs, though, are hard to come by, he said, and poverty is evident. They live the life, one that is not affluent to the point that there is a sense of self-reliance, Cisneros said. Many residents drive 40 minutes or more to get to jobs in Santa Fe, Taos, or at Los Alamos National Laboratory, according to federal census data. Johnny Sandoval, who lives about 30 miles from Dixon in the states most densely Democratic community of Cordova, says anyone is lucky to get a job and he wants more jobs brought into the region and more public works projects on their rusting, old water wells and their roads. He feels forgotten by the federal government. They (government officials) dont give us anything, the 41-year-old construction worker said while taking a break from helping his relative, Filiberto Martienz, 68, install some wood-stove pipe in the familys 200-year-old home. We kind of gave up on that (help). What you see is because we do it. But he said many of his neighbors and relatives are using some form of government support, either Social Security payments for retirement, disability because of accidents at work, unemployment or food stamps. Sandoval said some of his neighbors work as teachers in Chimayo or Espanola or on the countys road crews. Despite a lack of local jobs, Sandoval said he doesnt want to leave. There are people here who are very talented, but if theres no work, what can we do? he said. This is our roots. Its quiet and peaceful. A sense of community The communities are close, nestled in valleys with homes built around the Catholic church in each neighborhood. Neymark and his wife, Elizabeth Riedel, who live just outside Dixon in Embudo, know most of the names of folks coming in and out of the Dixon Cooperative Market, which sells some organic and high-end foods next to everyday needs. And almost everyone else coming and going from the small store knows Clovis Romero, who sat with a friend outside the market after his daily visit to his 92-year-old mother, who lives in the familys multi-generational home. Romero, who lives in Taos, said Dixon is as peaceful and quiet as he remembers it being when he was young just with more white people and a lot more from out of state. These newcomers, Romero said, know how to tap into private funding to raise the community of Dixon out of the poverty. They know what doors to knock on, he said. He credits them with getting money to build and fund the library, upgrade the grocery store and start and maintain a thriving community center. Their desire to live there, though, has also contributed to a rise in property values. Political roots In the old days, he said, it was local political leaders of the Democratic Party who helped people. He and his friend, Ruben, sitting on a bench in the shade of the grocery store, easily recalled Emilio Naranjo and Ted Kennedy, brother of Catholic U.S. President John F. Kennedy. Operating on the vestiges of patronage left behind by the Spanish, Naranjo served Rio Arriba County as sheriff, county manager, a federal marshal and a state senator. At the time of Naranjos death in 2008, Fabian Chavez Jr., a former state Senate majority leader and a lifelong New Mexico political observer, described Naranjo to the Journal as a master organizer whose patronage meant quick results for constituents with problems needing fixing. State Rep. Nick Salazar, 87, who has been in the Legislature since 1973 and is one of the longest-serving legislators in the nation, recalled Naranjo and talked about why so many people in the area are Democrats. He said many of the Democrats in the area are such because to be a Republican was to be at odds with those who had the money to fix local problems. When the Republicans were in power they (neighbors and family) all became Republican. When my dad sent me to get registered, I came home and he said, Well did you register? Well I didnt register Republican. He got all angry on me, and he asked me why. I said Republicans werent doing anything for the community, not fixing problems, said Salazar said. Ive been a Democrat ever since. THE VIEW FROM THE RIGHT Hard work, self-reliance and dedication to the community keep families together and the governments role to a minimum GRADY Theres barely a speck of litter in this region. Maybe the wind on the Llano Estacado, or the Staked Plain, blew any trash over low grass crops, rusty fields of milo, and hundreds of head of cattle. Maybe the residents know that its somebodys land theyd be dropping trash on, and for the people who live in this area, smack-dab between Tucumcari and Clovis, land is work and work is seen as devotion to family, neighbor, country, and, for many, to Jesus. It is a personal reasonability to take care of your property, yourself and your kids, and try to help the community, be involved in the community, said state Sen. Pat Woods, a Republican from Broadview in Curry County, just a few miles from Texas. If the neighbor is having trouble, you help them. And you work. Most residents work at ranching and farming, with more than 90 percent driving only five minutes to work in the area around McCalister in Quay County. Ive never been without a job in my life, said Tom Sidwell, a rancher and president-elect of the New Mexico Cattlegrowers Association who makes his living on the plains. Making their own way Compared with more urban and Democratic areas in the state, few working-age people in this area with some of the highest concentrations of registered Republicans receive government financial assistance. Overall, you take care of yourself and your neighbors. We have a few that relies on the government, but not many, said Edna Pettigrew, 62, who lives in the village of Grady. Of the estimated 408 residents in these voting precincts, about 30 percent use government assistance programs to pay for food and non-retirement health care. There are no cases of cash welfare, according to the states Human Services Department. That compares with estimates of up to 80 percent in some of the more urban and Democratic areas. Edna Pettigrew, left, calls a neighbor during her daily visit with her mother, Jessie Whitehead, in Whiteheads kitchen at the familys home in Grady. The home used to be the villages pharmacy when the village also had a grocery store, bank and more. Now it has a stop sign, 40 homes and a high-performing school in the sparsely populated region between Tucumcari and Clovis. (Maggie Shephard/Albuquerque Journal) Doris Lee, left, and her son, Johnny Lee, tend to the familys horses after a meeting with their racehorse trainers. The family has for generations lived near House, northwest of Clovis, an area with one of the highest concentrations, per capita, of registered Republicans in the state. (Maggie Shepard/Albuquerque Journal) Delores Dee Dunning, 75, watches a late summer rain fall on pumpkins harvested from her garden in Grady, north of Clovis. She says neighbors are free to and often do pick from her garden as they please. (Maggie Shepard/Albuquerque Journal) A dirt road leads into one of the most heavily Republican areas in the state. Its a sparsely populated region between Tucumcari and Clovis. (Maggie Shepard/Albuquerque Journal) Prev 1 of 4 Next We are, in a sense, self-reliant here, because theres not many people here. In a way, we watch out for ourselves, but we also watch out for each other, said Elmer White of Grady. We are our own welfare system. And they are often their own security system, too. Nearly everyone is armed. I honestly dont know anyone who doesnt carry a gun, Pettigrew, 62, said. Sidwell said that a few months ago, a suspicious person was walking down the main highway, N.M. 209, which runs south out of Tucumcari. Instead of calling police, he called the neighbors nearby to give them a heads-up. He and his wife, Mimi Sidwell, say self-reliance is the key term to describe the people in the area. We believe in limited government, local government and strong property rights, Mimi Sidwell said from the kitchen of the Sidwells 7,000-acre grass-fed beef ranch. Historical origins Many in this area tell stories of their ancestors who came, mostly from Oklahoma and Texas, decades before the Dust Bowl to claim land. Those great-, sometimes great-great-grandparents were mostly Democrats, the populist, conservative-style Democrats of the South who more resembled Republicans of today, if one can lay a simple label on the fractured party. For Woods, who remembers the family story that his great-grandfather rode 30 miles in a horse-drawn wagon in the snow to lay eyes on his land, it makes sense that this area is home to more registered Republicans per capita then almost every other area in the state. Even the registered Democrats here say that they regularly vote for Republicans, but that their parents and grandparents were Democrats, so they are. And for many, it wasnt a difficult switch to leave behind the mantle of old Democrat in favor of new Republican. I was a Democrat until (Woods) was running for Senate. And there was a lot of us who did that, said Delores Dee Dunning, 75, who lives just a few hundred feet from Pettigrew and her mother, Jessie Whitehead. Like Pettigrew, Dunning can stand in the middle of the small neighborhood in Grady, home to about 40 residences and clustered around the beloved Grady Municipal School, and name off everyone in each home as far as the eye can see. Doris Lee, 77, can do this, too, from her horse barn about 30 miles from Grady. Well, yes, I can tell all that, Lee said. This is a friendly area with hospitality, but were also interested in the world. Woods says that local intimacy makes this area paradise. We have the most friendly people, and theyre willing to help anybody all the time, he said. ISLAMABAD So much divides two women who fought in the battle to take the honor out of killing in Pakistan. Naeema Kishwar shrouds herself in a burqa, showing only her eyes. She belongs to a political party that has been linked to the Taliban. And she comes from deeply conservative tribal lands where girls have been killed for going to school. Sughra Imam sometimes wears a scarf draped lightly on her hair, but often her head is bare. She belongs to a liberal party whose leader, Benazir Bhutto, the first female prime minister of this predominantly Muslim nation, was assassinated by extremists. She comes from a prominent Pakistani family and was educated at Harvard. But at least one thing unites the two: they have spent their political careers fighting for women. Although they have never met, and usually are on opposite sides of the aisle, Kishwar and Imam became unlikely allies in the battle to pass a historic law to protect women from murder by members of their own families. In this country with a complex legal system that is a tapestry of Islamic Sharia law and British common law, legislation passed decades ago has allowed many of those who kill in the name of family honor to go free. A familys honor can be tarnished by something as innocent as sitting next to an unknown man, or helping a friend elope with the man of her choice. Invariably the honor of a family is tied to a womans chastity. The law decrees that relatives of a murder victim can forgive the killer; they can even take money in exchange for the killers freedom. Human rights groups argued that in the case of honor killing, this granted immunity to killers, because both victim and perpetrator are usually family members. Hard-line Islamic groups, however, defended forgiveness as a religious edict from the Quran. But the mood in the country began to shift in the last year with the rise of social media and a proliferation of television channels featuring dramas about girls who find love and fight back against sexual assault. The new channels started covering honor killings, and Pakistanis grew outraged over a series of grotesque murders that happened with such regularity they could no longer be seen as isolated cases: a daughter burned alive by her mother, a social media star drugged and strangled by her brother, a teenage girl ordered by a tribal council to be bound and burned like Joan of Arc for helping a friend elope. There are changes in Pakistan, says Imam. Most of the people in Pakistan are young. They are searching for change. ___ After Imam became a member of Parliaments upper house seven years ago, the poor who tilled the land in her constituency in Punjab province started coming to her with stories of a man who had killed his wife after seeing her talking to another man, or of a brother who killed his sister for having illicit relations. These were women whose names I didnt even know, she says. They had received no media coverage, and I thought: How do we protect these vulnerable women?' She saw that the men who killed showed no worry of even going to jail. No one was ever afraid. They never felt they would be punished. They knew they would be forgiven, Imam says. She insists that Islams provision of forgiveness wasnt intended to apply to premeditated murder. The provision was meant to end feuds, to bring peace. It was not meant to be able to kill with impunity, she says. The law has been perverted. When Imam began to craft her bill three years ago, she wanted the killings removed from the Islamic law known as Qisas and Diyat, which allows the family to forgive a murderer. She spent hours poring over religious texts. The only solution she could find was to have killing in the name of honor removed from Islamic law altogether, making it impossible to forgive the killer, even if the sentence was death the common penalty for murder in Pakistan. I didnt want even the mention of forgiveness in the law, she says. I wanted someone who killed in the name of honor to know he could be sentenced to death. Because her party was in the majority in the Senate, she didnt need a consensus to get her bill passed. But she wanted an agreement with the religious parties, because their support would make it more likely that the police and judges would implement it. She refused interviews on local channels, shunning publicity that might have raised hackles. Instead, she quietly negotiated with religious leaders. There was a precedent. Pakistans religious parties had made an exception once before when Pakistan passed its anti-terror bill. According to that law, a culprit cannot be forgiven even if sentenced to death. Imam, whose slight stature belies her tenacity, wore her fellow lawmakers down until finally they agreed to her wording. Even senators from Kishwars hard-line Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam Party were among the Senates 104 members who passed Imams bill unanimously last year. But the legislation never came to a vote in the more powerful National Assembly, dominated by the Conservative Pakistan Muslim League, a traditional ally of the religious parties. Imams bill was dead. It would take an extraordinary moment in Pakistans history, and help from Kishwar, to bring it back. ___ Kishwars hometown of Mardan is in a deeply conservative region of Pakistans northwest, where women are rarely seen on the streets without the all-enveloping burqa, and suicide bombers have killed scores of people, many of them children, in attacks this year targeting schools, police, a courthouse and minorities. When she was a child, Kishwar says, parents discouraged their girls from attending school, but she was allowed to go all the way through law school. As a teenager she swore to fight for change, and when she first was elected to public office in the provincial Parliament in Pakistans northwest in 2002, she advocated for girls schools and colleges. But women faced other problems. In her province, tribes have long abided by a custom known as sarwar, in which families settle a dispute by marrying a young daughter to a rival family, often to a much older man. Kishwar, who has been in politics for 24 years and is now a member of the National Assembly, lobbied against the practice, calling it an inhuman custom. As a result of her efforts, Parliament passed a law making sarwar illegal. I have been raising my voice in the Parliament for the rights of women, and I will keep doing it, she says. But Kishwars activism is shaped by her strict interpretation of her religion. She says Islam demands women cover from head to toe, and she adheres firmly to segregation of the sexes. Like Imam, she wanted honor killing punished, but unlike Imam, she defends at least some forgiveness, saying Islam gives families the right to reconcile. Because I wear this veil and love my religion doesnt mean I accept this, she says of honor killings. No. But its complicated. The legislation proposed by Imam could be revived only if the government called a joint session of the Senate and National Assembly. That seemed unlikely until a heart-wrenching documentary about the murderous practice won an Academy Award this year. A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness, trained an international spotlight on the killings, and public outrage over the gruesome toll. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif finally vowed he would work to change the law. In search of a consensus, the government sent the bill to a committee, whose members held a potentially disastrous mix of views ranging from secular to hard-line religious. Imam was no longer a senator at this point, but she wasnt sidelined: her party and the governments law minister consulted her often as the bill was shepherded through the committee. She had to see it through. Kishwar, a member of the committee, knew that Imams language was a nonstarter for her hard-line party and its leader, Fazlur Rahman, who told her the party would never take honor killing out of the Islamic law that allows forgiveness of a crime. It was very difficult for me. I was the go-between between the government and my party. Fazlur Rahman was following it closely and was continually in touch with the ulema (clerics), she says. Farhatullah Babar, a soft-spoken, silver-haired senator with Imams party, tried to find a compromise outside the committee. A proponent of a secular Pakistan, Babar says he spent hours trying to sway the Rahman to support the new legislation. After all, even the Council of Islamic Ideology had recently issued a statement calling honor killings un-Islamic, he said. But eliminating forgiveness raised the danger that the Federal Shariat Court could rule that the legislation violated the tenets of Islam. Still, Babar says the religious leader clearly wanted to find a middle ground. The environment was right, Babar says. The entire Parliament was incensed, and those opposing it would have felt vulnerable in the public opinion. In a unanimous vote, the committee finally agreed on a compromise bill: a mandatory 25-year sentence for a convicted honor killer. But the final wording allowed forgiveness of the death sentence. ___ On the day the legislation came before Parliament this month, the vote almost didnt happen. The cavernous National Assembly Hall, dominated by a giant portrait of Pakistans secular-leaning leader, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, who promised equal rights for all Pakistanis regardless of religious beliefs, was half-empty. The day had been long, most of it spent railing against India over the disputed Kashmir region. As the vote neared, lawmakers, several of them women, walked around the hall whispering to one another. Party lines were crossed. Kishwar placed her copy of the Quran on her desktop. Babar, who would introduce the compromise bill, was huddled with a dozen female lawmakers. Some within Imams party threatened to vote against the bill, saying it had been watered down too much. An independent lawmaker railed that Parliament was being hijacked overtaken by a Western agenda, accusing the United States and Israel of wanting to impose itself on Pakistan. On the floor, a member of Imams party, Sherry Rahman, said the bill was too important to allow it to be defeated, pointing her finger accusingly at the members of the religious parties. Knowing her partys line in the sand, Kishwar stood up, waved the Quran and read a verse from it. She warned that no bill that removed forgiveness completely would pass. Finally, in a move that would have been unthinkable even a few years ago, lawmakers passed the law by a majority voice vote. The nays were a barely audible whisper. Kishwar was triumphant. She got the compromise she wanted the middle ground that protected women but didnt infringe on Islamic law. Imam welcomed the vote as a good first step. Laws are a guiding hand for how a society evolves, she says. People will generally move in that direction. We can become more just over the years. Shes philosophical about the concessions involved in the process. Now, at least, those who kill in the name of honor know they will have to pay a price. Now when I see that there is fear in the family, she says, that gives me hope that it will make a difference. ___ Associated Press Writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report. Follow Kathy Gannon on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kathygannon . SAN ANTONIO San Antonio police say an uninvited guest dressed as fictional serial killer Freddy Krueger shot five people at a Halloween party. Sgt. Jesse Salame (SAHL-uh-may) says the partygoers who were wounded in the shooting early Sunday were all treated and released from hospitals. Salame says the suspect remains at large Monday. Police say the shooting happened after two men who were not invited showed up to the costume party. Authorities believe the man in the Krueger costume got into an argument with others and began shooting. Both men fled. Investigators are trying to determine what prompted the fight. Salame says police believe alcohol played a role in the incident. Freddy Krueger is the main character in Wes Cravens Nightmare on Elm Street horror movies. PRESCOTT, Ariz. A California man accused of fatally shooting his father at a Yavapai County campsite has been arrested in his hometown. Yavapai County sheriffs deputies say 21-year-old Francis Claude Klettke was apprehended Saturday during a traffic stop in Union City. He is awaiting extradition in an Alameda County jail to face a murder charge. Sheriffs spokesman Dwight DEvelyn says the body of 60-year-old Dale Klettke, also of Union City, was found Thursday in some brush near where a witness saw him camping the night before. Investigators say the victim had been shot multiple times. His vehicle was also missing. DEvelyn says a witness description of a suspect seen in the car closely matched Francis Klettke. This led to Union City police assisting in the search for him. CARLSBAD Carlsbad police said they have arrested a man in connection with an alleged kidnapping of two children Friday morning. Richard Fierro, 42, was taken into custody after the incident and an arrest warrant was completed by the Carlsbad Police Department Friday night, according to a news release. He is charged with four first degree felonies and nine fourth degree felonies including kidnapping and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Fierro allegedly forced two children, ages 8 and 15, from a group of children walking to school at gunpoint into a vehicle early Friday morning near Desert Willow Elementary in south Carlsbad, according to the criminal complaint. Police said the children were able to free themselves after Fierro crashed the vehicle he was driving. According to the criminal complaint, Fierro told police he was being forced to kidnap the children in order to protect his daughter. In an interview with police, Fierro said there was a note that gave the names of the children he was to kidnap, according to the complaint. It is not clear from the complaint whether police have substantiated those claims. Police interviews with the victims involved showed they had no prior contact with or knowledge of Fierro, according to the complaint. Police found suspected marijuana in the vehicle Fierro was driving and found suspected cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine during a search of Fierros residence, according to the complaint. Fierro is in custody at the Eddy County Detention Center. 2016 the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.) Visit the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.) at www.currentargus.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. _____ BEAUMONT, Texas A Texas judge has removed the widow of rapper Pimp C as the administrator of his estate after the rappers son raised concerns about the management of his fathers finances since his death. An attorney for Chad Butler Jr., the rappers oldest son, told a judge that his fathers home in Port Arthur is in foreclosure, expensive jewelry is missing and various bills have gone unpaid, the Beaumont Enterprise reported (http://bit.ly/2fqzC2F ). At a court hearing Wednesday, Josh Heinz, an attorney for Chad Butler, presented financial documents that showed Chinara Butler, Pimp Cs widow, spent $150,000 of the estates revenue from 2011 to 2013 and more than $80,000 in the past two years. Public records show the estate has a $7.2 million federal tax lien and owes $5.1 million to a former manager. Nobodys gotten any money, said Heinz. Shes on red carpets in Los Angeles and New York and these kids have nothing. Chinara Butler, who is Chad Butler Jr.s stepmother, said she never kept Pimp Cs family members from using his likeness to make money. I have not left (Pimp Cs) kids abandoned, said Chinara Butler, who is the mother of Pimp Cs youngest child. Ive invested my own money into this estate and done my best to keep Pimp C relevant. Pimp C, born Chad Butler, was one half of the trailblazing rap duo Underground Kingz. He died in December 2007 from an accidental drug overdose. The 33-year-old father of three died without a last will and testament. Chad Butler Jr. said he became increasingly frustrated last fall when Chinara Butler started promoting an album Long Live the Pimp, one of three posthumous albums produced since his fathers death. Chinara Butler said she received little to nothing from the three albums. Cherrell Rene, Chinara Butlers manager, said her client did not oppose the judges ruling because managing the estate was a burden. Chinara Butler had previously been removed as administrator for several months in 2010 after a judge found she had misapplied $150,000 worth of jewelry and could not account for certain estate assets. ___ Information from: The Beaumont Enterprise, http://beaumontenterprise.com LONDON The Pirate Party, a radical movement of anarchists and hackers that didnt exist this time four years ago, surged to third place in Icelands national elections but fell well short of expectations that it could top the vote, according to results released Sunday. The outcome of the Saturday election more than triples the number of Pirates in the countrys parliament, the worlds oldest, and it ensures that the renegade movement will remain a force in Icelandic politics for years to come. The Pirates, an offshoot of an international movement launched in Sweden, had campaigned on a platform of direct democracy, transparency and turning Iceland into a digital safe haven, the Switzerland of bits. The partys leader, poet Birgitta Jonsdottir, had promised Edward Snowden citizenship in a Pirate-led Iceland. But voters stopped short of putting the Pirates in a position to govern, opting instead to give the pro-business and establishment-oriented Independence Party another shot to lead a country that was turned upside down by the 2008 financial crisis. The Independents had argued that the Pirates were a danger to the countrys economy, which has recently found its footing thanks to a tourism boom. As expected, no party won a majority, and the Independents will struggle to form a coalition after their partner for the past three years, the pro-farmer Progressives, were punished by voters for the lingering fallout from the crash as well as this years disclosures in the so-called Panama Papers. The spring revelation of an offshore firm owned by the prime ministers wife forced his resignation, and led to the calling of Saturdays vote. A Pirate victory in tiny, prosperous and peaceful Iceland would have offered a dramatic symbol of the anti-establishment tide sweeping the Western world this year. Polls in the lead-up to the vote had the Pirates running even with the Independents, or even topping them. But in the end, with four-fifths of the countrys quarter-million eligible voters casting ballots, the Independence Partys 29 percent was enough to put it comfortably in first place. The Independents total nearly doubled the vote of their next-closest competitor, the Left-Green Movement. The Pirates slipped to third, with 14.5 percent. The Pirates could still conceivably find their way into the government if the Independents fail to put together a coalition. With seven different parties winning enough votes to enter the parliament, the country was almost exactly divided between traditional, right-of-center parties and left-of-center or more radical alternatives. The kingmaker could ultimately prove to be a party that is even newer than the Pirates, a breakaway faction of the Independents known as Regeneration. That partys leader, a mild-mannered mathematician named Benedikt Johannesson, had said before the vote that he would not let his centrist and technocratic party become the third wheel in another coalition of the two current governing parties, the Independents and the Progressives. Regeneration strongly favors Iceland joining the European Union, and the partys newfound clout could help put the issue, which has long divided Iceland, back on the countrys political agenda. The Pirates dont take a position on E.U. membership but, as with many issues, argue the choice should be left to the voters through a popular referendum. A victory for the Pirates would have been a stunning result in a country where politics have long been relatively staid. But it would not have been completely out of character: A stand-up comedian became mayor of the countrys capital, Reykjavik, in 2010, after launching what he jokingly termed the Best Party. iceland CHARLESTON, S.C. The latest on the trial of Michael Slager, the white former South Carolina police officer charged in the shooting death of Walter Scott, an unarmed black motorist (all times local): ___ 12:50 p.m. The mayor of Charleston is urging residents to remain calm as two high profile court cases with racial overtones go to trial. Jury selection began Monday for former North Charleston police officer Michael Slagers trial in the shooting death of an unarmed black motorist. Next week, jury selection resumes for Dylann Roofs federal death penalty trial. He is accused of shooting nine black parishioners at a Charleston church. Mayor John Tecklenburg said at a news conference Monday that both trials present a challenge. But he also says its also an opportunity for the city to repeat its earlier example of showing that love can conquer hate. The Charleston area remained calm last year after both shootings, in contrast to cities that were rocked by violence after deadly confrontations between black citizens and white police officers. ___ 9:15 a.m. Potential jurors are arriving at the courthouse in Charleston, South Carolina, to hear the case of a white former police officer charged in the shooting death of an unarmed black motorist. Court officials said that 188 potential jurors were scheduled to report Monday morning for a juror roll call with questioning of individual jurors expected to begin Monday afternoon. Officials anticipate that it will take at least two days to seat a jury to hear the case of 34-year-old Michael Slager. He faces 30 years to life if convicted of murder in the shooting death of 50-year-old Walter Scott last year. Scott was shot in the back in April 2015 as he ran from a traffic stop. The shooting was captured in a dramatic cellphone video taken by a bystander. The defense says the short video clip seen worldwide doesnt tell the whole story and that there was a struggle between the two men before the shooting. ___ 4:40 a.m. The trial is starting for a former South Carolina police officer captured on video shooting an unarmed black motorist. Potential jurors report Monday in Charleston as jury selection gets underway in the trial of 34-year-old Michael Slager. The nation was stunned by cellphone video recorded by a bystander showing Slager shooting 50-year-old Walter Scott as he ran from a traffic stop in April 2015. The jury will have to decide if the shooting is murder. If convicted Slager, faces 30 years to life. Jury selection is also being held this week in a similar case in Cincinnati, Ohio. Ray Tensing is charged with murder and voluntary manslaughter in the July 2015 shooting of Sam DuBose, who was pulled over for a missing license plate. LOS ALAMOS, N.M. Los Alamos is now equipped with bear-resistant trash containers at 10 locations throughout the city. The Los Alamos Monitor reports (http://bit.ly/2eryhnU ) that the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish provided the 13 cans after receiving complaints from the Los Alamos Medical Center. The $31,500 cost of the project will be split between the department, the medical center and Los Alamos County. The bear-resistant dumpsters feature heavy metal lids with two smaller access doors for people to use. ___ Information from: Los Alamos Monitor, http://www.lamonitor.com CHEYENNE, Wyo. A Wyoming man accused of manslaughter in the death of a missing 13-month-old boy allowed him to be exposed to methamphetamine before the boy died, prosecutors charge. A criminal complaint released Monday charges Logan Hunter Rogers, 23, of Cheyenne with involuntary manslaughter and child endangering with a controlled substance in the death of Silas Anthony Ojeda of Cheyenne. Wyoming authorities plan to start searching a landfill in Ault, Colorado, for Ojedas body on Tuesday. Capt. Linda Gesell of the Laramie County Sheriffs Office said Monday that her office has secured a search warrant for the landfill and was moving trailers and other resources to the scene. Rogers remains jailed in Cheyenne with bail set at $500,000 cash. He had a hearing by video camera from a local jail before Circuit Court Judge Denise Nau on Monday afternoon. Nau told Rogers that conviction on the manslaughter charge could carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison while the child endangering charge could carry up to five years. Rogers said he wants to apply for a public defender to represent him. Nau set a preliminary hearing for Nov. 9, at which shes scheduled to rule if he should stand trial. Detective Ryan Martinez of the Laramie County Sheriffs Office made a sworn statement to support the felony charges against Rogers. Martinezs statement gives the following account: The boys grandfather, Richard Ojeda of Cheyenne, called authorities on Oct. 26 to report his grandson missing. Rogers, the boyfriend of Ojedas mother, Rhiannon Ojeda, on Oct. 26 told investigators that he had turned the boy over to another man on Saturday. He said the man, whom he identified only as Santiago, had taken the boy because he intended to take him fishing and camping for a couple of days. Rogers later told investigators that he hadnt been honest about Santiago taking the boy, but then said members of a motorcycle club had taken him. Rogers then said the boy had died Oct. 20 after falling from a counter at the family home and that Rogers put his body in a trash container at a local community college. Trash from the container goes to Colorado. Investigators searched the trash container and Rhiannon Ojedas vehicle. Two dogs certified to search for the odor of human cadavers alerted to the vehicle and to the trash container. Investigators talked to Rogers again on Oct. 27. He told them he had taken the boy to a friends house on Oct. 20 where people smoked methamphetamine near the boy. Rogers became concerned that the boy had been exposed to methamphetamine because the boy became hot to the touch. Rogers gave the boy a long bath at his friends house before leaving to make methamphetamine deliveries to others. Martinez concluded his statement by stating he believes Silas Ojeda suffered abuse and died at home. Martinez said he believes that Rogers dumped the boys body in a trash container at the community college. It is a common refrain among despondent Americans watching the substance-free, scandal-driven 2016 campaign: My God, I cant wait for this to end. Well, I have some bad news: Its not going to end. If Hillary Clinton wins, the cycle of scandals, lies, investigations and coverups will continue unabated for the next four years. Until recently, Democrats were praising FBI Director James Comey as a great man and a wonderful and tough career public servant . . . with the highest standards of integrity after he recommended against prosecuting Clinton. Today, they have seamlessly transitioned to attacking him as a partisan hack for informing Congress that the FBI had uncovered emails potentially germane to their Clinton probe on a computer they had seized in a separate investigation of disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner (for allegedly sexting with a 15-year-old girl you cant make this stuff up). The email scandal is not going away. House Intelligence Committee chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., said this weekend, We will clearly investigate all of the information that we have as it relates to classified information being put on networks where Russians, Chinese, other bad actors could get ahold of the information. If classified information is found on any of the 650,000 emails on Weiners computer, it will give these congressional inquiries a whole new life as well it should. Then the Wall Street Journal reported this weekend that, according to sources, the Obama Justice Department limited efforts by FBI agents to investigate whether the Clinton State Department gave special access and favors to Clinton Foundation donors. Congress will certainly investigate whether there was improper interference in those FBI efforts. And there will almost certainly be investigations into ABC News recent revelations that State Department officials gave special treatment to Clinton Foundation donors after the Haiti quake, asking for them to be identified as FOBs (friends of Bill Clinton) or WJC VIPs (William Jefferson Clinton VIPs) while sending others to a government website. There will also be investigations into the Wall Street Journals revelations that the political organization of Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (a Democrat who is a longtime FOB), and the state Democratic Party he controls, steered some $675,000 into the campaign of Virginia Senate candidate Jill McCabe, whose husband, Andrew, later helped oversee the Clinton email investigation as deputy director of the FBI. The Post reports that the FBI is also investigating whether McAuliffe, who was an unpaid director of the Clinton Foundation, violated a statute regarding U.S. citizens lobbying on behalf of foreign governments. Then expect a battle royal with Congress if Clinton tries to elevate close aides such as Huma Abedin, Cheryl Mills and others implicated in her email scandal to positions of public trust. In announcing that he would recommend against prosecution in July, Comey made a point of declaring that this is not to suggest that in similar circumstances, a person who engaged in this activity would face no consequences. To the contrary, those individuals are often subject to security or administrative sanctions. Republicans will insist that such sanctions be imposed on anyone who mishandled classified information, received immunity or took the Fifth in the Clinton investigation including denial of access to classified material. And they may also want to look into how Abedin failed to turn over husband Anthony Weiners laptop containing thousands of Clinton emails after she swore under oath that she had handed over all the devices she possessed containing such emails. Congress will almost certainly take a careful look into the leaked 12-page memo by Bill Clinton confidant Doug Band in which he details the squalid underside of what he calls Bill Clinton, Inc. and the shady nexus between the Clinton Foundation, Bill Clintons private speech income, Bands consulting firm Teneo and the Clinton State Department. In other words, the Clinton honeymoon is over before it even begins and rightly so. It is simply inconceivable that Clinton aides removed classified headers from emails and used BleachBit to erase emails after receiving a congressional subpoena to preserve them, and yet not a single person has been punished. The whole Clinton machine seems to have an immunity from consequences. That is unhealthy in a democracy. Today, some in the media may be turning a blind eye to Clintons scandals because they are terrified of the prospect of a Trump presidency. But once that prospect is off the table, the press may finally turn on her. And with just 11 percent of Americans believing she is honest, Clinton will have little public support to fall back on if they do. The Clintons are like the Peanuts character Pigpen wherever they go, it seems, their own private cloud of controversy and corruption follows. In the 1990s, it was Whitewater, the firing of White House travel aides, Madison S&L, cattle futures and bimbo eruptions. Today, it is the Clinton Foundation and her private email server. And tomorrow who knows? Once she takes office, Clinton and her team will almost certainly set in motion an entirely new set of scandals. As a former CIA psychological profiler who spent years studying the behavior of terrorists and criminals recently pointed out to me, the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior in similar situations. This individual continues: We do know enough about Clintons past behavior to know what she is likely to do if elected President. She will sell access to foreign governments to enrich herself; she will hide her true intentions and actions behind a lack of transparency, even if it means flouting the law; she will lie to the public to advance her political agenda, her career and protect her reputation, as she lied to the loved ones of the patriots killed in Benghazi . . . and she will continue to carry out her elected duties in corrupt ways. If Clinton wins next week, we are in for four more years of scandal. Happy Halloween. Thiessen is a fellow with the American Enterprise Institute and former chief speechwriter to President George W. Bush. clinton-comment PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) A Princeton University polling expert who said he would eat a bug if Donald Trump got more than 240 electoral votes has followed through on his promise. Sam Wang, of the Princeton Election Consortium, made good on his Twitter word on CNN Saturday. He ate from a can of gourmet-style crickets and added in some honey. He said John the Baptist ate locusts and honey in the wilderness, and he considers himself to be in the wilderness as well. Wang says on the consortium's website that polls failed, but that his analysis amplified that failure. He apologized for underestimating the possibility of Trump winning. Wang is a data scientist and neuroscientist at Princeton. Online: http://election.princeton.edu/ 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. MEXICO CITY Nearly every day in El Salvador, police have what they call enfrentamientos or confrontations with the powerful street gangs that blanket the country. Another word for this is a shootout. So the announcement last week by the director of the National Civil Police of El Salvador, Howard Cotto, that police have done this 459 times so far this year points to the severity of the conflict between the gangs and the state. In those confrontations, 424 alleged gang members were killed, Cotto said at a news conference. The website Insight Crime, which tracks security issues in Latin America, pointed out that this means that El Salvadors authorities are clashing with criminal groups more often than in Mexico, which is still engulfed in a drug war, and Colombia, whose half-century-long civil war is ending despite those countries having far larger populations. One notable thing about the enfrentamientos statistic is that many people in El Salvador view this term with deep suspicion. From human rights officials to average citizens, many people doubt whether an exchange of fire took place and wonder if police officers simply killed their enemy. Last year, on the San Blas farm south of the capital, eight gang members died in a what police described as a shootout. Investigative reporting by the El Faro news site cast doubt on those statements, and the attorney generals office subsequently brought charges against several police officers for extra-judicial execution. The government of President Salvador Sanchez Ceren has pursued a fierce crackdown on gangs over the past two years, imposing emergency measures and calling up soldiers and police into the fight. While those measures are often popular in gang-weary El Salvador gangs are responsible for killings, kidnappings and vast amounts of extortion human rights workers have repeatedly raised warnings about abuses by authorities as they carry out their operations and target gang members. The homicide rate has fallen from its height in 2015. Still, there have been more than 4,400 murders so far this year, down by about 1,000 from last years total at this time. elsalvador Twice on Sunday, Donald Trump told audiences at rallies that electing Hillary Clinton risked a truly spectacular shift in the composition of the United States. When youre working for Hillary, she wants to let people just pour in. You could have 650 million people pour in and we do nothing about it, Trump said. Think of it. Thats what could happen. You triple the size of our country in a week. Well, no. For a lot of reasons. Before we get into the important question of the mechanics of having 650 million people roll up to enter the United States, an exercise that will hopefully make clear just how hyperbolic this particular schmear of hyperbole happens to be, lets stop and consider the comment. Donald Trump uses hyperbole the way some politicians use touching voter anecdotes to reinforce a broader political point. He says completely outrageous and completely untrue things because he feels as though they bolster his broader point: Immigrants are risky. Is is true? Not the point. The point is oh no, immigrants. This particular claim turns his normal immigration hand-wringing upside down. Usually he wants to curtail new immigration because, in his formulation, scattered among the some-of-them-who-are-good-people are a number of neer-do-wells who bring drugs and commit crimes and are adherents of the Islamic State. Hes repeatedly pledged that the good ones could leave the country and come back, as a sop to those who criticize him for rejecting new immigrants out of hand. The 650 million claim is a warning about having too many good ones. Its a parents warning about taking it easy on your Halloween candy, except the warning is that if you eat all your candy in one night and all the leftover candy in the house and also eat all of the candy collected by every kid in the tri-state area and also have a fudge IV inserted overnight, you will get sick. So: 650 million people! Thats a lot. The population of the planet is about 7.1 billion, meaning that Trump figures one out of every 10 citizens of the world wants to live here for some reason. (About 319 million already do.) The United States would jump from the third-most populous country to the third-most populous. (China and India are very big.) Where would those people come from? If literally every person in South America suddenly decided that Reno was a more appealing place to live than Rio, we could see 422 million people slowly make their way up to the United States. Add in everyone from Central America and were at nearly 600 million. If every Canadian decided to move south, we hit 633 million, still a bit short. If every non-American in the Western Hemisphere decided to move to the United States, wed be talking about 677 million people. Lets assume that most of the new immigrants Trump is warning about are coming from Central and South America. (He seems less concerned about Canadian immigration, downplaying the need for a wall that the Trudeau administration would pay for.) That means they can simply pack up cars or trucks with their belongings and head on in. After all, Trumps argument is that the Clinton administration would welcome them; theres no need to trudge through the Arizona desert to enter the United States if youre allowed to come in. The Department of Transportation has data on the number of border crossings each month. In July, 12.7 million people crossed the Southern border in personal vehicles or in buses. Six million crossed the border in Texas; 4.9 million in California and 1.5 million in Arizona. So far this year, 83 million people have crossed the border with Mexico. Trump sort of paints himself into a corner with the in a week part of his comment. If were assuming that all 600 million people from Central and South America want to relocate to the United States in a week, it would mean that each of the 25 busiest border crossings with Mexico would need to operate at 44 times the weekly capacity during July of the crossing in San Ysidro, Calif., the crossing that currently handles the most traffic. All moving in one direction, mind you; the Border Patrol would probably need to put the kibosh on anyone wanting to head south during that week. Or, of course, people could rent all-terrain vehicles and head across the border willy-nilly. With that backlog at the border crossing, it would be tempting to skip the wait. And this only accommodates 600 million people. How many cars are we talking about? Lets assume that we squeeze four people and their belongings into each car. (Thats higher than the average crossing the border; in July, most crossings had an average of two people in each passenger vehicle.) The most popular car in Brazil is the Fiat Palio, each of which is at least 12 feet long. The line of Palios carting all of the new immigrants into the United States would therefore be 1.8 billion feet long, enough to stretch around the Earth 86 times. If each car started in Panama City, Panama, it would mean 106 lanes of traffic heading up to El Paso, with no room between the cars bumpers from the Texas border to the Panamanian capital. If everyone in Central America, South America and Canada came to the United States, 17 million more would have to come from somewhere else, meaning that theyd have to either fly or take a boat. (Of course, a lot of the 600-plus million who came from Central and South America would skip the thousands-of-miles-long line of cheap Italian compacts and fly or sail themselves.) The busiest airport in the country is in Atlanta, where just under 2 million people flew in and out in an average week in 2015. So wed need nine airports to handle an equivalent capacity in this mega-week of immigration, just to accommodate those 17 million extra people. If more of those new immigrants to the United States wanted to fly here, weve got a bit of a problem. The top 45 busiest airports in 2014 handled an average of 24.8 million people a week in 2014. If each of them somehow magically were able to deal with 10 times their normal influx of passengers allowing flights at all hours and allowing planes to land in much closer sequence, say wed hit less than half of the one-week immigration total that Trump foresees. Immigrants hoping to come by boat have a few options. If theyre coming from Cuba, say, any number of boats might work. If theyre coming from Europe, Africa or Asia, they need something a bit more robust. The largest cruise liner in the world is the Harmony of the Seas, which carries 5,500 passengers in luxurious comfort. If those 17 million people wanted to cross the ocean on a fleet of Harmony of the Seases, wed need 3,090 of them. If my math is right, theyd displace a collective volume of about 100,000,000 liters of water (assuming a weight of 71,500 tons apiece). The good news is that the oceans are large enough to handle the slight rise in ocean level that would result. Once all of these immigrants arrive that week, there would be a lot of ancillary problems. Traffic coming away from the borders and airports would be a mess for a long time. There were about 2.2 million rental cars in the United States in 2015; its safe to assume that many rental car companies would be out of inventory for a while. Another complication is housing. The Census Bureau estimates that there are currently 17 million vacant housing units in the country, meaning that the new immigrants would have to squeeze 38-to-a-home on average. We can offset that a bit by filling up each of the 5 million hotel rooms in the country. But that only helps a little. I guess what Im trying to say is that even if Hillary Clinton wanted to allow a tenth of the world to move to the United States, which she doesnt, it couldnt really happen, even if you gave her more than a week to get the job done. Its almost like maybe Donald Trump just says things for effect sometimes? trump-immig A professor fired after allegations that he sexually harassed students is fighting the university to get his job back while denying the claims against him. Cristobal Valencias response to the claims against him were laid out in a 15-page letter to the University of New Mexicos Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee, an independent group that reviews issues with faculty employment. Valencias attorney, Michael Mozes, told the Journal he had no comment. Dr. Valencia had maintained throughout that the findings of the (Office of Equal Opportunity) report were mistaken, unsupported by evidence, and based upon false and invented statements instigated by faculty who had created a hostile work environment for him, according to the appeal sent to the committee. Provost Chaouki Abdallah last month approved College of Arts and Science Dean Mark Pecenys decision to terminate Valencias contract at months end. Valencia, a tenure-track professor, earned a salary of $71,000. The appeal is the latest in the monthslong investigation that culminated in Valencias termination from the anthropology department. His appeal also marks the first time Valencia has argued his case publicly. Multiple requests for comment from the Journal have gone unreturned. According to a UNM report, Valencia was accused of making lewd comments about his students, touching them inappropriately and at one point saying he didnt take orders from white bitches, according to complaints filed with the school. Marsha Baum, chairwoman of the Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee, would not confirm or deny whether the committee received the appeal, saying it is bound by confidentiality. The committee, which is made up of faculty members, reviews appeals, university spokeswoman Dianne Anderson said. Mozes argues that portions of the universitys investigation were debunked in prior investigations and that Valencia wasnt given the chance to defend himself on other charges. He also dismissed allegations of sexual misconduct or treating students differently based on their physical appearance or sexual orientation. Its important to note that the majority of the discriminate /retaliation/sexual harassment claims were found to be lacking sufficient evidence, Mozes wrote in the appeal. Valencia is seeking reinstateent, unspecified monetary damages and an apology from university President Bob Frank, Abdallah, Peceny and others Meanwhile, the climate at the anthropology department appears to have worsened, based on a departmentwide email obtained by the Journal . In that missive, Les Field, the head of the department, acknowledged a declining sense of trust by the students for the department and my administration. Earlier this year, three faculty members walked away from the department in connection to the Valencia case. I want to apologize to all of you for behaviors on my part that contributed to the corrosion of trust, Field wrote in the Oct. 21 email. He said an anonymous survey to gauge the departments climate is likely. Field didnt return a call or email Monday from the Journal seeking comment. TUCSON, Ariz. An Arizona lawmaker says the city of Tucson is violating a state law by destroying guns turned in by residents or seized from crime investigations. Rep. Mark Finchem has filed a complaint accusing Tucson of violating a 2013 law that requires otherwise legal guns obtained by law enforcement agencies be sold, not destroyed, The Arizona Daily Star reported (http://bit.ly/2dVzDuZ ). City records show that the Tucson Police Department has destroyed 4,820 guns since the beginning of 2013. Finchem, an Oro Valley Republican, argues that the city is destroying valuable public property. The city of Tucson flagrantly violated state statutes and deprived the taxpayers of the opportunity to obtain a fair-market value of a public asset, he said in a news release. Finchem added that the firearms should have been auctioned off to the highest bidder. Finchem filed the complaint under a law signed by Republican Gov. Doug Ducey this year. It states that local governments can lose their state-shared revenue if they violate state laws and dont stop doing so. Tucson received $172 million from the state last year. Tucson City Attorney Mike Rankin sent state Attorney General Mark Brnovich a 16-page letter explaining why he does not believe the destruction of city property falls under the legal control of the Legislature. This is a matter of solely local concern in which the state Legislature may not interfere, Rankin wrote. He said the laws Finchem cited dont apply to the citys handling of guns, which it has been destroying for more than a decade. Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild said the complaint is a legal matter, not a political one. He said the new law signed by Ducey challenges the sovereign status of cities. ___ Information from: Arizona Daily Star, http://www.tucson.com If the only gay voices you hear are Trump foes and Clinton boosters think George Takei, Ellen DeGeneres, Laverne Cox you could easily assume that all LGBT voters are in the Democratic presidential nominees camp. Well, think again. A Gallup poll released Wednesday reports that 12 percent of LGBT adults view Republican nominee Donald Trump favorably. Granted, thats compared with the 55 percent who have a positive view of Clinton, but its still a surprising number. Even more eyebrow-raising, the poll found that fully 21 percent of older (55+) LGBT people gave Trump a favorable rating. Not at all surprisingly, pro-Trump gay Republicans have been pumping up the volume in recent weeks. This has frustrated many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Democrats, leading to some of the most uncivil discourse of this already horrific election season. If the intent is to change the minds of some of the estimated 6.5 million LGBT voters, this is hardly the way to go about it. To unpack this, lets start with Cody Moore and Dewey Lainhart. On. Oct. 21, Jason Bellini, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, posted a video interview he conducted with the gay couple at a Trump for President rally in the swing state of Ohio. Recently engaged, the guys said they planned to vote for Trump, primarily on the issues of trade and jobs. Lainhart, 31, a steelworker, said: Im tired of the bulls government. Its time for a change. Trumps the man for it. Bellinis video quickly went viral in the LGBT community. Moore and Lainhart were called out on Facebook as idiots and rednecks; they were even compared to Jews who supported Hitler. One commenter urged two bricks directly into their faces, and the couple told Bellini theyd been getting death threats. Lainharts response to those threats: It doesnt concern me. I look over my back because I do carry (a gun), because I love the Second Amendment. Most visible of all of Trumps gay supporters has been Republican Peter Thiel, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur who endorsed Trump at the GOP convention this summer. Two weeks ago, Thiel doubled down on Trump, saying he planned to donate $1.25 million to his campaign. Thiel has also been tarred and feathered online, called everything from a traitor and a disgusting pig to an atrocity and just plain pathetic. Its obvious that Thiels stratospheric socioeconomic status is at the opposite end of the spectrum from Moore and Lainharts working-class wages, but they have this in common: Other issues jobs and immigration, for example clearly trump their identity as gay men. And many in the LGBT community dont seem to know how to respond to that in anything but the most venomous of terms. In (our) community, theres always been a level of vitriol between gay Republicans and gay and lesbian Democrats, said Hilary Rosen, a Democratic strategist and a lesbian. Gay Republicans see their sexual orientation as separate and apart from who they are in many cases. Gary Gates, a Gallup senior researcher and author of the poll, said the LGBT community is becoming more politically diverse as more people feel free to come out. This increased political diversity is also present in party identification, he said, meaning more gay Republicans and more mystified and outraged LGBT Democrats. The outrage stems in no small part from this years GOP platform, which is as anti-gay as any ever embraced by the party of Lincoln. Even the Log Cabin Republicans, the largest LGBT GOP organization in the country, called this years platform the most anti-LGBT Platform in the Partys 162-year history. This is a contrast from the candidate himself, whom the Log Cabin Republicans called the most pro-LGBT presidential nominee in the history of the Republican Party. Despite such hyperbole, they still refused to endorse him, pointing out that Trump has selected senior advisers with strong anti-LGBT records, including his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, a Christian conservative and LGBT foe. While I completely understand why LGBT Democrats strongly oppose Trump (as do I), it doesnt excuse the level of personal disparagement. Take Juan Hernandez, a gay, Hispanic Trump supporter, who told Political Insider, Coming out as gay was really difficult, but coming out as a Trump Republican supporter was far more difficult. I think the threats and nasty comments are inappropriate, Rosen said. I dont think its ever called for. It just feels wrong. It feels depressing. Depressing, indeed. Name-calling within the LGBT community does nothing to help change the hearts and minds of our gay brothers and sisters of different political stripes. It only makes civility more of a partisan issue than an American value. This is especially important this election year because LGBT voters can make a critical difference in many of the swing states, Gates said. Verbal assaults and physical threats aimed at gay Republicans not only add more fire to this superheated political season but also are counterproductive. But I see hope for greater civility. The Human Rights Campaign recently launched a new ad campaign based on the life of Christopher Drew Leinonen, who was among the 49 victims killed at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando in June. His mother, Christine, speaks from her heart in making her case to gay Republicans. He had the kind of personality that brought people together all people, she says in this heartbreaking example of personal storytelling. If weve learned anything from the resounding success of the marriage equality movement, its that by telling the stories of our lives and loved ones, we can speak with a civil tongue, change minds and even pick up more votes. civilities Vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine plans to deliver remarks at a rally in Phoenix this week completely in Spanish as part of a newly invigorated push by the Democratic ticket to compete in Arizona, a Republican-leaning state with a rapidly growing Latino population. Kaines announced appearance on Thursday will follow a stop in Arizona on Wednesday by the partys presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton. Her senior aides said this week that her planned appearance underscores their belief that the state is a true battleground in the race against Republican Donald Trump. They made the assessment before news broke about the renewed FBI scrutiny of Clintons State Department emails. The last time a Democrat carried Arizona was 1996. Kaine, who interrupted his law school studies to do missionary work in Honduras, is fluent in Spanish and often breaks into the language on the campaign trail. But aides said his Phoenix remarks will be the first time a major-party presidential ticket candidate has delivered an entire speech in Spanish at an official campaign event. He is also scheduled to appear at a rally Thursday in Tucson. Kaine, a senator from Virginia, also made history in 2013 when he became the first sitting senator to deliver a speech on the chambers floor in Spanish. His topic was immigration reform. Recent polls from Arizona have shown a tight race, with Clinton leading in some and Trump in others. kaine-spanish The Justice Department moved Monday to quell the outrage and frenetic speculation surrounding FBI Director James Comeys disclosure last week that the bureau has resumed its investigation of Hillary Clintons private email server after discovering a new trove of emails. The department signaled that it now wants the politically charged investigation to follow standard procedures, including a strict limit on official comments about the probe and the provision of updates to Congress through routine channels. But after Comeys highly unusual disclosure last week rocked the final days of the presidential campaign, it may prove impossible for Justice to lower the temperature and regain control over how the investigation is conducted and depicted to the public. On Monday, criticism of Comey continued to mount, notably from prominent law enforcement officials. Democrats and Republicans alike on Capitol Hill amplified their demands that Comey and Attorney General Loretta Lynch provide a more detailed account of the investigation into the emails, which were found on a computer belonging to former representative Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., earlier this fall. Justice is a staid and secretive department, and on Monday officials tried to restore that traditional bearing, trying to tamp down the highly public disclosures about a confidential investigation. Justice officials said there will be no further statements or news conferences about the Clinton investigation until it is completed. The FBI has designed software to sift through thousands of emails found on Weiners computer and identify any that are to or from Clinton. The department also sent a three-paragraph letter to six lawmakers saying it would move quickly in pursuing the renewed investigation into emails potentially tied to Clintons server. The letter was sent by the departments head of legislative affairs not Comey or Lynch in a return to standard practice. The Department of Justice appreciates the concerns raised in your letter, wrote Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Peter Kadzik, addressing lawmakers who had asked Comey and Lynch for more details. In particular, the lawmakers had pressed for details about the investigative steps being taken by the FBI, the number of emails involved and the steps being taken to determine how many of the emails duplicate those already reviewed by the FBI. We assure you that the Department will continue to work closely with the FBI and together, dedicate all necessary resources and take appropriate steps as expeditiously as possible, Kadzik wrote, adding no new details about the investigation. We hope this information is helpful. It was not, according to several lawmakers and their staffs. We are not satisfied, said a staffer for Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., who was one of the congressmen who received the letter, along with Democratic Sens. Thomas Carper, Del., Patrick Leahy, Vt., Dianne Feinstein, Calif., and Benjamin Cardin, Md., and Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, wrote Comey Monday saying that the disclosure provided to Congress last week did not go far enough and was unfair to Congress, the American people and Clinton. In the absence of additional, authoritative information from the FBI in the wake of your vague disclosure, Congress and the American people are left to sift through anonymous leaks from Justice Department officials to the press of varying levels of detail, reliability, and consistency, Grassley wrote. The American people deserve better than that. The senator asked Comey to answer by Nov. 4 a series of questions about the discovery of the emails and what the FBI has learned about their contents. Grassleys request adds to the increasing pressure on Comey to release more details and clarify his letter to Congress. A bipartisan group of about 100 former federal prosecutors and senior Justice Department officials have also called on Comey to release more information. We do not question Director Comeys motives, wrote the group, which included President Obamas former attorney general, Eric Holder Jr., and former deputy attorney general Larry Thompson, who served under President George W. Bush. However, the fact remains that the Directors disclosure has invited considerable, uninformed public speculation about the significance of newly-discovered material just days before a national election, the group wrote. For this reason, we believe the American people deserve all the facts, and fairness dictates releasing information that provides a full and complete picture regarding the material at issue. Comey set off a firestorm Friday by telling the chairmen of eight congressional committees that the FBI would take appropriate investigative steps to determine whether newly discovered emails found in an unrelated investigation contain classified information and to assess whether they are relevant to the investigation involving Clintons private email server. The unrelated case was an investigation of Weiner, who is accused of having explicit exchanges with a 15-year-old girl. Weiner is the estranged husband of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. Justice officials have said that before Comey notified Congress, they warned him that doing so would go against long-standing practices of the department not to comment on ongoing investigations and not to take steps that could be viewed as influencing an election. However, officials familiar with Comeys decision said that he felt a sense of obligation to lawmakers to supplement his testimony under oath in July that the Clinton investigation was complete and there would be no charges. Comey was also concerned that word of the new email discovery would leak to the media and raise questions of a coverup, the officials said. Comeys disclosure about the Clinton probe is particularly striking, national security officials said, because he had argued against the administration publicly accusing Russia of trying to meddle in the 2016 election as a move that would seem too political too close to Election Day. Comey eventually supported the administrations Oct. 7 denunciation, which alluded to hacks of Democratic Party organizations, in part because it did not have the FBIs name was not on it, officials said. Comeys position was first reported by CNBC. One official said the total number of emails recovered in the investigation into Weiner is close to 650,000, although that reflects many emails that are not related to the Clinton investigation. But officials familiar with the case said that the messages include a significant amount of correspondence associated with Clinton and Abedin. The FBI has software that can quickly search for words or phrases to identify any emails that might contain material that was originally classified. It also should not take long to determine if there are emails that are duplicates of ones already collected in the probe, bureau experts said. But if the bureau finds emails that contain potentially classified information, getting those analyzed could take weeks because the agencies whose information was being discussed would need to review them, officials said. White House press secretary Josh Earnest praised Comey on Monday as a man of principle . . . integrity and talent and said that Obama, who nominated Comey three years ago to serve a 10-year term, does not believe that he is trying to influence the presidential election. Earnest said that the president believes it is important for the norms, traditions and guidelines surrounding FBI investigations to be followed. But Earnest said repeatedly that he would neither defend nor criticize Comeys decision, saying he lacked the independent knowledge to weigh in. Greg Jaffe contributed to this report. VIDEO: The Posts Matt Zapotosky explains why FBI Director James Comey informed lawmakers Friday that the bureau would examine newly discovered emails linked to Hillary Clinton. (Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post) http://wapo.st/2eZxdZZ clinton-emails-1stld-writethru Officers search for carjacking suspects near Central and Pennsylvania Monday afternoon. (Roberto E. Rosales/Journal) Officers search for carjacking suspects near Central and Pennsylvania Monday afternoon. (Roberto E. Rosales/Journal) Officers search for carjacking suspects near Central and Pennsylvania Monday afternoon. (Roberto E. Rosales/Journal) Officers search for carjackign suspects near Central and Pennsylvania Monday afternoon. (Roberto E. Rosales/Journal) Officers search for carjacking suspects near Central and Pennsylvania Monday afternoon. (Roberto E. Rosales/Journal) Prev 1 of 5 Next Police searched for a woman suspected in a violent carjacking near East Central Monday afternoon but didnt find her, according to a spokesman for the Albuquerque Police Department. Simon Drobik said around 3 p.m. a man and a woman carjacked a vehicle at gunpoint in the foothills area command. He said the victim called police immediately, and officers found the vehicle when the suspect crashed near Central and San Pablo. When they approached that vehicle the male and female fled on foot, Drobik said. As the male fled he dropped his handgun and the female passenger picked it up. Officers took the man into custody and set up a perimeter to search for the woman. Drobik did not identify the male suspect or say what he will be charged with. La Mesa Elementary School on Copper and Charleston NE was put on lock down around 3:30 p.m., according to the Albuquerque Public School District. Officers broke down the perimeter shortly before 7 p.m. without having taken the woman into custody, he said. -This is a developing story. More information will be added as it becomes available. John Fox is a California wine-shop owner who was convicted this summer of swindling customers out of millions in a Ponzi-type scheme. John Fox Sullivan is the retired publisher of Atlantic Media, which owns the magazines National Journal and the Atlantic, and he is the mayor of the quaint hamlet of Washington, Virginia. Very different men but a Sunday story in the New York Post about the Bernie Madoff of wine included (oops) a picture of Sullivan, not Fox. The upstanding mayor was alerted to the goof by a friends email on Sunday morning, and he was surprised to see his own mug with a caption identifying him as a multimillion-dollar con artist who blew clients cash on luxury cars and women. Sullivan says he quickly called the paper to alert editors to the error, and after talking to a few people finally spoke to someone who said they would look into the matter and call him back to tell him how they would handle it. The photo was taken down online, and Sullivan eventually got a call from New York Post editor Stephen Lynch on Monday apologizing for the mix-up. (We should note that the call came after The Washington Post contacted the tabloid for comment.) Sullivan is having fun with the case of mistaken identity sort of. Im looking forward to framing it, he says. But then there are people who might think thats me. A spokeswoman for the New York Post tells us the paper unfortunately ran a photo of the wrong John Fox and will be printing a correction in tomorrows paper. Sullivan, though, confesses he has at least one thing in common with his felonious doppelganger: I do quite like wine. reliable-source-mayor Public Service Company of New Mexico, the states largest electric utility, has withdrawn from regulatory consideration a plan to build a $100 million natural gas plant and pipeline in San Juan County. In a conference call with investors last week, PNM said it was abandoning the proposal due to lower-than-expected energy demand projections. Were finding the highest points are not as high as we had previously forecasted, CEO and President Pat Vincent-Collawn said during the call. As a result of this, we have decided to file a motion to withdraw the application. The company filed the motion with the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission on Friday. The 80-megawatt plant was part of PNMs plan to replace energy lost from the closure of half of the coal-powered San Juan Generating Station. PNM agreed to the closure as part of a 2015 settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency aimed at reducing air pollution in the Four Corners area. In a statement, PNM spokesman Pahl Shipley said it is possible the company will revive the proposal in the future. PNM is currently evaluating its energy portfolio for the next two decades. The current forecast indicates PNM will need additional resources by 2020, said Shipley. We will continue to evaluate resource needs going forward and will file a new application with the commission if a new plant or other resources are required to serve PNM customers. In its motion to withdraw the plan, the utility said it would use market purchases to meet any energy needs in 2018 and 2019 that go beyond its current resources. The motion was unopposed by any of the intervening parties in the case. PNMs gas plan met the fiercest resistance from the advocacy organization New Energy Economy, which accused the utility of proposing an unnecessary project to justify increasing customer rates and the companys profits. We are thrilled that PNM is dismissing their gas plant and gas pipeline case, said Mariel Nanasi, New Energy Economys executive director, in a statement. Consumer demand is actually going down, but despite this, PNM thought they could get away with even more bloat: $100 million for a superfluous gas plant and gas pipeline just to line the pockets of PNMs senior management off the misery of the poor. Shipley declined to comment on Nanasis comments. Though none of the intervening parties opposed PNMs motion to withdraw the application, New Energy Economy opposed the utilitys request to halt the collection of additional documents and information from PNM as part of the legal process known as discovery. PNM has reported a 16 percent net earnings drop to $40.9 million in the third quarter compared to the same time a year ago. The drop was due in part to decreased electric demand at Intels Rio Rancho plant, as well as a recent rate case decision that approved a customer rate hike far smaller than the one PNM had requested. The companys third quarter earnings reflected $11.3 million in pre-tax regulatory disallowances and restructuring costs as a result of that decision. PNM has said it will file a new rate case in December. DETROIT Kevin Stanton, a 55-year-old volunteer for Hillary Clinton, was having a good day. As he walked door-to-door off Livernois Avenue, plenty of his fellow black Detroiters told him theyd already turned in their ballots. One elderly woman danced in her wheelchair as she said shed absentee-voted for Clinton- her three grandchildren would do the same if they want to live in my house. Several voters said the FBIs announcement of yet another email probe had made them even more motivated. But at one home, a voter in his 20s opened the door and couldnt wait to close it. Not voting, he said. Not voting this year. Stanton had seen that before. Them old people fought for the right to vote, and they believe in it, Stanton said. It was the young guy who said he didnt want to vote. But that guy voted for Barack, and it may be the only time he ever votes. Following the latest FBI inquiry, which has dominated news coverage for days and has been described as a potential lifeline for Republican nominee Donald Trump, Clintons campaign is counting on its organization more than ever to revive the coalition that twice elected Barack Obama. In many places, such as Michigan, that means turning out minorities in big numbers to overcome Trumps advantage among white voters. The trend in early-voting returns has been both encouraging and worrying for the Clinton campaign: Enthusiasm among Latinos appears to be up, in some cases considerably, but African-Americans are turning out in smaller numbers than they did with Obama on the ticket. Thats the picture in Florida. Early returns show a boost in turnout in heavily Latino counties and a decline in largely African-American ones. In a state such as Nevada, where Democrats are relying heavily on Latinos, early returns show they are voting in similar numbers as in 2012, boosting Democratic chances. But in battleground states such as Ohio where Democrats are counting on African-Americans to put them over the top, they could be in trouble if blacks stay home. Polling shows a similar story. Clinton maintains a large lead among nonwhite voters in the Washington Post-ABC News tracking poll, but by a smaller margin than Obama did. In polling since Oct. 20, Clinton has led Trump by more than 3-to-1 among all nonwhites (69 percent to 19 percent), compared with Obamas margin of 80 percent to 19 percent in 2012. Moreover, nonwhite voters are more united by their strong dislike of Trump than positive views of Clinton only 39 percent have a strongly favorable view of Clinton, while 68 percent are have strongly unfavorable views toward Trump. On Monday, in campaign trips scheduled before news of the FBI inquiry broke, Trump was attempting to vault the Democratic blue wall with stops in Michigan. No poll has suggested that Clinton could lose the state. It would take a collapse of suburban support or a cratering black vote to make that happen. Exit polls from the past few elections show how Democrats could lose their advantage. In 2004, the last time a white candidate led the Democratic ticket, then-Sen. John F. Kerry won Michigan by 3.4 points. According to the exit poll, he lost Michigans white voters by 10 points but carried a supermajority of nonwhites. Black voters, who made up just 13 percent of the electorate, went for Kerry by a 79-point margin. Eight years later, Obama won Michigan by 9.5 points but did just as poorly as Kerry with white voters. Much of his margin came from black voters, who rose to 16 percent of the electorate and went for him by 90 points. In closer states, Trumps campaign is working to soften enthusiasm for Clinton among young black voters. One TV ad plays a clip of Clinton, then supportive of a new crime bill, referring to a group of young black offenders as super-predators. That two-decade-old quote even after an apology has dogged Clinton with some Black Lives Matters activists. Trump has also sought to dampen enthusiasm by casting life in black communities as something akin to apocalyptic. Democrats counter that Trump is uniquely ill-equipped to talk black voters into staying home. Rumors of Trump supporters challenging voters have spread quickly and been included in the doorstep pitch on why to vote early. One elected Democrat here speculated that militia groups might dispatch their members to join the poll watching programs suggested by groups such as Oath Keepers and by Trump supporter Roger Stone. On Monday, Democrats filed lawsuits in Arizona, Nevada, Ohio and Pennsylvania alleging that Trump, the Republican state parties and Stones group Stop the Steal are conspiring to intimidate and block minorities from voting. Trump is violating federal civil rights by using the loudest microphone in the nation to implore his supporters to engage in unlawful intimidation at polling places, the lawsuit filed in Pennsylvania alleges. Stones response: I assume the purpose of this bogus lawsuit is to distract from the voter fraud the Democrats have traditionally engaged in. In North Carolina, where Democrats and civil rights groups won a high-profile lawsuit against Republican-backed voting restrictions, the early look is mixed. Total black turnout has fallen 17 percent from its 2012 level, but Democrats point to a shrunken number of early-voting locations to claim that they are on track. At the polls, the voters who are showing up said they feeling an obligation, if not passion. Its not like four years ago when we knew we were going for Barack Obama, no ifs, ands and buts, Sunia Wilson, 38, said after casting a ballot at the Chavis Community Center in Raleigh. This year its like, Hmmm. I dont know. But Ive got to vote. In Florida, where Latino voting patterns look stronger for Democrats, the relationship between shaky enthusiasm and fear of voter suppression is even more complicated. Reports of problems at the polls have spiked, with the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials reporting 31,000 phone calls to its help line since its September launch. Meanwhile, voters such as 20-year old Robert Ortiz were not sure if they would bother. As he walked out of a Duvall Homes thrift store in Deltona, Florida, Ortiz said he could not figure out which candidate to trust or what to believe. The latest revelation about the FBI looking into more emails from Clinton only added to the noise. You try, but you still dont really know how they truly feel about life, Ortiz said. One is too eager to be president. And one does not know anything about struggling people. No, no, both of them are like that. In Michigan, with higher stakes and a bigger built-in advantage for Democrats, their pitch to black voters comes with plenty of caveats. One of the fliers given out on every canvass shows Obama talking to Clinton in the Oval Office, a black-and-white photo with Protect His Legacy written across it. In a state where felons are allowed to win back their voting rights, canvassers emphasize that Clinton has endorsed a criminal-justice reform agenda. On Sunday morning, Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Mich., whose district covers much of Detroit, stopped by the Life Line church to tell voters that Trump favored a national stop-and-frisk approach, contending he supports mass incarceration. Nobodys asking you to marry Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, Lawrence said. I dont think any of us here is planning on having them over for dinner tomorrow. But when you tell me, Oh, Im sick of this, and, Oh, Im not going to vote the audacity of anyone to say that, when theres blood still on the ground from people who fought for that right! On Sunday, as Stanton knocked on doors, the FBI inquiry came up multiple times never in a way that reflected poorly on Clinton. One voter, pulling into his driveway, said the new story had persuaded him to vote early. Fred Franklin, 56, was so irate about the email inquiry that he stopped another canvasser to vent. I just found out this morning that most of those emails are duplicates of what they already had, Franklin said. Theyre not even from her! Theyre to Hillary! Comey got involved in politics, and if you ask me, he should be fired. Michigans Republican voters, who have lived through 24 years of presidential droughts, are not getting cocky. Trumps Monday schedule took him to Grand Rapids, where Democrats say he has underperformed with social conservatives, and to Warren, a Detroit suburb where he stumped in the primary. The Warren crowd did not quite pack an events center, and the voters trickling in more than one dressed as Clinton in a prison jumpsuit said that they fully expected Democrats to come out. I live in Flint, and it feels like every year, said Brenda Battle Jordan, 59. They work the polls and they pull out their vote. Theyre everywhere. Doesnt matter who they run. Ed OKeefe in Washington, Robert Samuels in Florida and Vanessa Williams in North Carolina contributed to this report. clinton-minorities Federal Office for the Environment FOEN Birmensdorf, 31.10.2016 - Climate change means that trees germinating today will be living in a much-altered climate by the time they reach middle age. The espected changes are likely to hit them hard and threaten key forest functions in the decades ahead. However, appropriate management shall enable to increase the forest habitat's adaptability. This is shown by the results of the Forests and Climate Change research programme conducted by the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) and the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) since 2009. Appropriate management will increase the forest habitat's adaptability. Climate change is happening so quickly that a question mark hangs over whether forests can adapt accordingly without human interference and can continue to perform their various functions such as timber production, protection against natural hazards and providing a recreational space for the public. In Switzerland, temperatures have already risen by around 1.9C since the beginning of industrialisation. Even keeping global warming down to the 1.5-2C target set by the Paris Agreement on climate change will yield a further increase of 1-2C. For the Swiss forests, this warming trend will involve vegetation zones shifting 500700 metres higher in altitude. Thus, in future, broadleaf trees will increasingly thrive in lower-lying mountain forests which are currently dominated by conifers. Rising temperatures and drought levels during the growing season are exerting stress on trees and are increasing the risk of forest fires and exacerbating attacks by harmful organisms. This affects Norway spruce, for example, which is more susceptible to bark beetle infestation in prolonged dry spells. In future, it will be less common at lower elevations, while the conditions will be increasingly favourable to more drought-tolerant species such as the sessile oak. Foresters and forest owners should already tailor the management of their forests to these future conditions. With a view to ensuring a sound empirical basis for this, in 2009 the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL and the Federal Office for the Environment FOEN launched the Forests and Climate Change research programme (see box 1). The results provide a comprehensive overview, unique for Central Europe, of the effects of climate change on trees and on the various functions of forests. Safeguarding forest functions against the backdrop of climate change The research results show that while forests can adapt to climate change to a certain extent, they are unlikely to be capable of continuing to perform their functions so natural-hazard protection, the increasingly vital production of timber as a renewable raw material and energy source or their recreational function everywhere to the extent we have become used to. A major disruptive event such as the forest fire that happened above Leuk in the Swiss canton of Valais in the hot summer of 2003 can undermine forests' natural function of providing protection from natural hazards and can require costly measures such as afforestation and avalanche barriers. It will take decades before the forest's full protective function is restored there. As a result of climate change, such events may become a more frequent occurrence in future. To avert the loss of such functions, the research programme devised various management strategies adapted to changing climatic conditions. In particular, they result in a greater increase in the diversity of the tree species. How a forest is affected by climate change and what type of management makes it more able to cope with the new climatic conditions depend decisively on the particularities of the relevant site, especially soil depth, water supply and slope exposure. These conditions are changing from site to site and must be viewed in the context of the management of the forest. In this way, for example, areas in high-resolution site maps can be shown where the climate-sensitive Norway spruce can continue to thrive (box 2). Currently, tree-species recommendations are being examined in forest tests along with the cantonal forestry offices and associations of forest owners and environmental and forestry industry associations. INSET 1 Forests and Climate Change research programme The purpose of the Forests and Climate Change research programme launched by WSL and the FOEN in 2009 was to develop the relevant knowledge bases and valid decision-making tools. More than 40 projects have been carried out and compared with or supplemented by international research findings. Apart from WSL, the University of Basel, ETH Zurich, the Paul Scherrer Institute in Villigen (canton of Aargau), the School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences in Zollikofen (canton of Bern), the Institute for Applied Plant Biology in Schonenbuch (canton of Basel-Landschaft), Bern-based company Meteotest and a number of engineering firms have been involved. The FOEN is providing 11 million Swiss francs in funding for this programme, while WSL and other research institutions are also investing a lot of funding. Some results and conclusions arising from the programme will be presented on 29 November 2016 at the Forum fur Wissen 2016: Wald und Klimawandel, a meeting of specialists that is open to the public which is being held at the WSL site in Birmensdorf (www.wsl.ch/forum, in German). INSET 2 Practical implementation as a key concern The practical implementation of the research results was a central concern of this research programme from the start. In Swiss forests, growing conditions, determined for instance by soil depth and moisture and by slope exposure, often vary over a small area and are shown on high-resolution site maps. These have proven themselves as a planning tool for those involved in forest activities, for example for measures in protection forests. A series of research projects have addressed the question of how the forest sites of today change in various climate scenarios and what long-term effects this will have on forests. Furthermore, specific recommendations are currently being drafted regarding forest management and the selection of sustainable tree species. For example, currently, tree-species recommendations from the programme are being consolidated in forest tests along with the cantonal forestry offices and associations of forest owners and environmental and timber industry associations. The research programme's findings also serve the purpose of implementing Article 28a entitled Vorkehrungen zum Klimawandel, which the Swiss Federal Parliament incorporated into the Forest Act in its revision in April 2016. They also contribute to the implementation of the strategy Adaptation to climate change in Switzerland and Forest policy 2020 adopted by the Swiss Federal Council in 2012. Address for enquiries Media Section Telephone: +41 58 462 90 00 E-mail: medien@bafu.admin.ch Publisher Federal Office for the Environment FOEN https://www.bafu.admin.ch/en 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. Our weekly round-up of all the latest movers in the charity sector. Fundraising and communications Tracy Griffin has announced that she will be joining disability charity Scope in a newly created role as director of marketing, fundraising and communications. Griffin will join Scope on 5 December from Crisis, where she has worked as director of fundraising for over 5 years. Griffin will be responsible for helping the organisation as it moves towards unveiling its new 5-year strategy, which it will launch in April 2017. Finance and operations Mental health charity St Andrews Healthcare has appointed Claire Carless a general counsel and company secretary. Carless role is a paid one within the charitys senior team. A lawyer, this is Carless first role within the voluntary sector - having previously held similar positions with RWE and Vodafone. She was most recently general counsel for Siemens plc in the UK. She previously held a non-executive directorship with South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust. Non executive Technology for good organisation Centre for the Acceleration of Social Technology (CAST) has announced the appointment of former Labour schools minister and peer, Lord Jim Knight to its board of trustees. While in government, Knight had cross-Whitehall responsibility for digital, and has consulted with a number of global tech firms, such as Apple. He is also the co-owner of a tech start up XRapid. Stuart Shepley has joined childrens communication charity I Can as a trustee and also treasurer. Shepley is a qualified actuary and a former partner at accounting firms KPMG and Grant Thornton. He also previously worked for Aviva, Commercial Union and ACE, a Bermudian insurance group. Shepley is also a member of two worshipful companies where he contributes to both their charitable and social activities. Vince Warrington looks at the importance of cyber security and explains why it should be at the top of the agenda for charities. On 1st September 2015 Alan McOwan, director of the Dean Street HIV Clinic in London, probably didnt think hed be at the centre of a media storm within 24 hours. Just a few minutes earlier a small mistake was made which escalated until McOwan found himself giving interviews on the TV news channels, attempting to protect the reputation of his organisation. With the story being reported as far afield as the US and Australia, its safe to assume hed had less stressful days at work. A few months later and it was Dido Harding, CEO of TalkTalk, in front of the cameras in the aftermath of a cyber attack. The incident and resulting coverage not only cost the company an estimated 65m to fix, it also saw them lose over 95,000 customers and in July this year it was reported that a fifth of those remaining wanted to leave as soon as they are able to. Whilst your donors may have more loyalty to you than they do a mobile phone company, it should worry charity boards across the country. The public, and media, now demands that you treat personal data with as much protection as you can. Fundraising is hard enough at the best of times having current and potential donors re-considering their support in the aftermath of a security breach could be devastating. The Information Commissioners Office (ICO) is also flexing its muscles. Whilst the causes of the aforementioned incidents were very different TalkTalk was targeted by hackers, whilst a clerical error was the cause of the Dean Street breach the outcomes were very similar. Both were fined, the clinic paying 180,000 and TalkTalk 400,000, and charitable status holds no sway when it comes to the ICO. And, despite Brexit, the incoming EU General Data Protection Regulation will still be applicable from May 2018 until we leave the EU, with fines as high as 20m or 4 per cent of global revenue for every single security breach, and any future UK Data Protection Act will essentially be in-line with EU GDPR. Much of the focus when it comes to information security is on hackers and cyber criminals, but they are only half the story. 50 per cent of all security breaches are caused by inadvertent human error and the majority of deliberate attacks require some form of interaction from an unsuspecting end user, such as opening an infected email attachment. Even in the case of TalkTalk, the attackers exploited vulnerabilities that had been known about for years and could have been easily patched if anyone had bothered to do so. Its clear that the cyber problem is not one of technology but is instead a human issue. People really are the weakest link in the chain. Protecting your data is no longer an optional extra, or something that you do if you have the time and budget. However, theres no 100 per cent fool proof strategy you can follow that will guarantee youll never have a security breach but there are steps you can take to reduce your exposure level. Obtaining an appropriate accreditation, such as ISO27001 or Cyber Essentials, can help you close off holes in your defences, and using the Cyber Defence Capability Assessment Tool (CDCAT) will identify where youre strong and where theres weaknesses. Youll need to develop policies and processes which enable a culture of security within your business. Effective governance is a key ingredient in the protected workspace, giving everyone the framework in which to operate securely on a day-to-day basis without inhibiting their ability to perform their role. Its a balance that can only be reached when an organisation knows how much risk it is willing to accept when it comes to protecting data. Most importantly, cyber security needs to be managed from the top, not from within your IT department. Were currently working with the Financial Conduct Authority to make sure information protection has a seat at the board at thousands of banks and insurance firms, and its an approach I would actively encourage for all charitable organisations. Cyber security is a business risk, not an IT one, and if you treat it as such then youll hopefully not find yourself being grilled on live TV. Vince Warrington is managing director at Protective Intelligence. Civil Society Media would like to thank Protective Intelligence for its support with this article. ATLANTA, GA--(Marketwired - October 31, 2016) - Cuisine is yet another art form on display at The Woodruff Arts Center now that Andreas Georgakopoulos has been named Chef de Cuisine of Twelve Eighty. Culture-seekers and foodies alike can experience this exciting lunch and dinner destination in the heart of Atlanta's premier visual and performing arts center. Chef Andreas, who spent the past decade as executive chef at Atlanta's popular Villa Christina restaurant, has already put in countless hours in his kitchen with talented staff members to develop a new menu for Twelve Eighty that features locally sourced, regionally influenced and seasonal cuisine. "Chef Andreas has a gift for melding flavors to create perfectly balanced dishes," said John C. Metz, Executive Chef, CEO and co-founder of Sterling Spoon Culinary Management, which operates Twelve Eighty. "He is the perfect talent to ensure that our vision for the culinary program is being executed at a high level for Twelve Eighty and The Woodruff Arts Center to welcome visitors with artfully crafted dishes that captivate their senses. Atlanta is at the forefront of our nation's food scene, and Twelve Eighty is part of that culture." Delicious new lunch and dinner menu items at Twelve Eighty designed by Chef Andreas and his staff include Spiced Lamb Souvlaki Sliders, Deconstructed Farmer's Vegetable Farro, Lollipop Smoked Chicken Wings, Six-Hour Rosemary Braised Lamb Shank and Maple Bourbon Salmon. Ready to experience global cuisine with a Southern twist? View the entire menu at twelveeighty.com or at facebook.com/TwelveEighty. Reservations can be made online or by calling 404-897-1280. A native of Greece, Chef Andreas began working in the culinary industry at the age of 18. As the grandson of a cheesemaker, he grew up in a culinary world full of flavors and aromas. His passion for food brought him to the United States to expand his knowledge and cultivate his craft. After graduating from California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena, CA, Chef Andreas worked as a sous chef at the Ritz Carlton Huntington Hotel, as well as other fine establishments in the Los Angeles area. He then worked for Hilton Hotels for a decade, traveling the country to open fine dining restaurants such as Finn & Porter. For the past 10 years, he has served as executive chef at Villa Christina. Story continues About Sterling Spoon Culinary Management Sterling Spoon Culinary Management combines talented chefs, dedicated employees and outstanding culinary and financial management to provide corporate cafe and on-site contract management clients extraordinary food and hospitality with an innovative retail restaurant approach. Founded by culinary-trained chefs, Sterling Spoon focuses on fresh, delicious offerings with a contemporary twist. The company's goal is two-fold: to exceed clients' objectives at all times and to offer clients a high-quality, affordable breakfast and lunch experience to their employees and visitors daily at their place of business. For more information, visit sterlingspoon.com. About The Woodruff Arts Center The Woodruff Arts Center in Atlanta, Ga. is one of the largest arts centers in the world, home to the Tony Award-winning Alliance Theatre, the Grammy Award-winning Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) and the High Museum of Art, the leading art museum in the Southeast. One of the only arts venues in the United States to offer both visual and performing arts on a single campus, The Woodruff produces outstanding theater, music and exhibitions for nearly one million patrons each year. Through the combined efforts of the Alliance, the ASO and the High, The Woodruff also offers remarkable educational programming, with approximately 200,000 students taking part annually, making The Woodruff the largest arts educator in Georgia. www.woodruffcenter.org. 10/31/2016 Lake Chapala (Photo via Pinterest) As my colleague Mark Huffman notes in a report on migrating to Canada, it's not something to be taken lightly. For one thing, Canada doesn't much want you unless you are educated, employable, and in good health. Besides, Canada is a cold country where the locals' idea of a good time is standing around listening to bagpipers, then going out for a nice moose steak. This frankly makes little sense. Why move north into the tundra when you can move south into the land of beaches, enchiladas, and some of the warmest, friendliest people on earth? Mexico, in other words. Like the United States, Mexico is a large and diverse country with different regions, ethnicities, and cuisines. You can spend years getting to know the place thoroughly and, once you do, your desire to get back home for the Iowa City Pig Roast will fade dead away. To hear the candidates tell it, Mexicans can't wait to abandon their country and sneak into the U.S., but this form of illegal immigration involves a small subset of Mexicans who, like their underclass counterparts up north, have been displaced by changing employment patterns. Most Mexicans would never think of uprooting their families and heading north, into a country that hates them and blames them for everything but the weather. A laidback land Oddly, despite the hateful rhetoric that flows their way, most Mexicans bear no ill will towards individual Americans and receive tourists and visitors warmly. And, unlike its neighbors to the north, Mexico is a relatively relaxed and laidback land that takes more of a Mediterranean view towards things like immigration laws. You want to visit Mexico? Bienvenidos. You want to move there? You're not alone. Many Americans head south of the border for months or years at a time and a sizeable number retire there, many clustering around spots like Lake Chapala. There are thought to be about 1 million Americans living in Mexico, many of them illegally. There is a visa for long-term visitors who are economically self-sufficient and will not be working in Mexico and taking jobs away from Mexicans. It's called the "Residente Temporal" and it allows you to remain in Mexico for up to four years. You may come and go as you please during that time. You should apply at a Mexican consulate before arriving in Mexico. Enforcement has been lax, however, and unless a visiting gringo gets in some kind of trouble, it is often not an issue. However, one could be fined or deported if caught living without a visa. Stay out of trouble As just about everyone knows, the cost of living in Mexico is a fraction of what it is in the United States. Housing is plentiful in most areas for those who have cash. Buying property is something that should not be approached lightly, as aliens do not always have the same property rights as Mexican citizens. It's worth keeping in mind that Mexico is a socialist country. The government controls many of the industries that are privately owned in the U.S. This means that if the government decides to build a giant resort on your land to lure more moneyed tourists, it will do so regardless of whether the locals like it or not. Remember, too, that there is no Bill of Rights in Mexico and while law enforcement may be spotty, it can be very harsh. Stay out of trouble, in other words. Avoid illegal drugs. Mexicans hate and despise drug dealers and those whose habits support them. The key to getting by in Mexico is to turn it all down a few notches, get to know the locals, and remember to renew that visa every four years. New Mexicos fourth largest credit union by assets, the $763 million Kirtland Federal Credit Union, said Thursday it intends to merge into the $2.3 billion Sandia Laboratory Federal Credit Union, the states largest credit union by assets. Although the proposed merger was approved by both of the credit unions boards of directors, the cooperatives have begun a more in-depth process to evaluate the possibility of combining the two organization, according to a prepared statement. Successful consolidations between two large asset credit unions are rare. In October 2015, the 2.1 billion United Federal Credit Union in St. Joseph, Mich. announced it intended to merge into the $4.6 billion Lake Michigan Credit Union in Grand Rapids. But in January 2016, the consolidation was called off and the credit unions did not publicly explain why it was canceled. Talking points: The New Zealand dollar lost ground after ANZ published its monthly business confidence roundup This showed a retreat from the previous month, but was still a relatively upbeat snapshot. The New Zealand economy remains in pretty good shape, especially compared to many other developed markets The New Zealand Dollar slipped back a little against its US cousin on Monday after a survey showed a slip in business confidence. Businesses were less upbeat in September than they had been the month before according to a survey from major lender ANZ. A net 24.5% of businesses were reportedly optimistic about the year ahead. Thats down three points on Augusts count. The New Zealand Dollar took a knock after the numbers. It slipped from US$0.71646 down to $0.71435. But at face value its hard to pin all of this fall on a confidence survey thats hardly catastrophic. Septembers business confidence reading was the still the second-highest for this year. And New Zealand's economy has been doing pretty well, thanks to strong tourism and high migration. A housing shortage has also supported building activity. The New Zealand Dollar had posted gains on the greenback earlier after the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was investigating further emails as part of a probe into Hilary Clintons use of a private email system. Narrowing polls in the US presidential race put some pressure on the US Dollar and the Kiwi was not alone in capitalizing on this. However, it is possible that some traders have decided to take a little of their profits off the table. Commodity dollars, which include the Kiwi as well as the Australian and Canadian Dollars, have been underperforming the majors as Treasury yields rise into a new week. This could be simple pre-positioning for Wednesdays US monetary policy decision. If so, the ANZ data may have just amplified some existing selling pressure. Either way investors wont have to wait long until the next likely New Zealand Dollar market mover. The country is a major dairy exporter and data on prices achieved in that sector will be released on Tuesday. Capped? The New Zealand Dollar lost some ground after business confidence numbers hit the wires. Chart created using TradingView Access Free Oil Trading Guide from DailyFX Analysts HERE ! Talking Points: Crude Oil Technical Strategy: Break Of Triangle Support ($51-$49/bbl) Keeps Focus Lower OPEC- & Non-OPEC Members seeking an exemption from the cut puts more pressure on Saudi Crude Oil near 4-week lows could accelerate as USD firms, and OPEC deal seems improbable Oil Bulls had a frightful start of the week that may continue through November. OPEC talks that included informal discussions with non-members seemed to take OPEC further away from an accord as reports surfaced of other countries wanting to join in and forego the production cut. The countries wanting to join the exemption if there is a deal has increased from Iraq & Iran to now include Libya and Nigeria. If the deal is still a go, this would mean the remaining members who agree to cut production would now likely have to cut more than originally anticipated to make an appropriate dent in Oil supply for the deal to be worthwhile. Many market participants expect Saudi to carry the brunt of the extra supply cut given that they produce ~31.3% of Oil from OPEC and the second and third largest producing countries are wanting an exemption. Interested In a Quick Guide about OPEC, Click Here A simple return to collegiate economics will help you see why this deal is so incredibly difficult to obtain. Oil production, as opposed to services, is known as a perfectly competitive market. In a perfectly competitive market, the offered product does not differ from one producer to another. There is not a Monopoly or Oligopoly as there use to be when the Cartel was created thanks in large part to Shale. Without the pricing power or belief in pricing power, giving up production is simply handing business to your competitors. The main identifier of a perfectly competitive market with a homogenous product is that maximum profit is achieved when optimal production or output is reached where marginal revenue is equal to marginal profit. This quantity amount, known as Q*, will maximize profit for the producer. Given the homogeneity of the product, if one producer pulls back, the market will simply shift to buying from another producer (i.e. those seeking exemptions or unwilling to play ball.) H4 Crude Oil Price Chart: Next Support Zone From Mid-September Identified As Crucial For Trend Chart Created by Tyler Yell, CMT Courtesy of TradingView Crude Oil has retraced half of its rally from mid-September that started at $42.72/bbl and went as high as $51.92/bbl in mid-October on DoE inventory data after the OPEC deal seemed a lock-in. A 50% retracement is still acceptable in an uptrend, and you can see above that were above the trendline drawn from the February low and connected off the July & September low. The trendline currently aligns with the 61.8% retracement of the September-October range. The zone has been highlighted on the chart above and encompasses the first trend correction in September between $46.53-$44.32/bbl. If the price can hold above this zone, then Bulls can remain confident albeit hurt by the ~ 13% corrective move. However, if the price breaks below this zone of support, we will likely see a much deeper correction. We recently shared in a previous note that we would wait to turn Bullish until we observed a break above structural resistance of the presumed-corrective moves lower at $50 and $51. Until the break of resistance surfaces, well be anticipating a move down toward $47.12/bbl. The burden of proof is now on the Bulls, and well continue to doubt their arguments if the price of Oil to fails surpass $50-51/bbl before anticipating new 15-month highs anytime soon. Key Levels Over the Next 48-hrs of Trading As of Monday, October 31, 2016 T.Y. To receive Tylers analysis directly via email, please SIGN UP HERE Extremely accurate measurements of microwave signals can potentially be used for data encryption based on quantum cryptography and other purposes. Researchers at Aalto University and the University of Jyvaskyla have developed a new method of measuring microwave signals extremely accurately. This method can be used for processing quantum information, for example by efficiently transforming signals from microwave circuits to the optical regime. Important quantum limit If you are trying to tune in a radio station but the tower is too far away, the signal gets distorted by noise. The noise results mostly from having to amplify the information carried by the signal in order to transfer it into an audible form. According to the laws of quantum mechanics, all amplifiers add noise. In the early 1980s, US physicist Carlton Caves proved theoretically that the Heisenberg uncertainty principle for such signals requires that at least half an energy quantum of noise must be added to the signal. In everyday life, this kind of noise does not matter, but researchers around the world have aimed to create amplifiers that would come close to Caves' limit. 'The quantum limit of amplifiers is essential for measuring delicate quantum signals, such as those generated in quantum computing or quantum mechanical measuring, because the added noise limits the size of signals that can be measured', explains Professor Mika Sillanpaa. From quantum bits to flying qubits So far, the solution for getting closest to the limit is an amplifier based on superconducting tunnel junctions developed in the 1980s, but this technology has its problems. Led by Sillanpaa, the researchers from Aalto and the University of Jyvaskyla combined a nanomechanical resonator - a vibrating nanodrum - with two superconducting circuits, i.e. cavities. 'As a result, we have made the most accurate microwave measurement with nanodrums so far', explains Caspar Ockeloen-Korppi from Aalto University, who conducted the actual measurement. In addition to the microwave measurement, this device enables transforming quantum information from one frequency to another while simultaneously amplifying it. 'This would for example allow transferring information from superconducting quantum bits to the "flying qubits" in the visible light range and back', envision the creators of the theory for the device, Tero Heikkila, Professor at the University of Jyvaskyla, and Academy Research Fellow Francesco Massel. Therefore, the method has potential for data encryption based on quantum mechanics, i.e. quantum cryptography, as well as other applications. ### The research team also included researchers Juha-Matti Pirkkalainen and Erno Darmskagg from Aalto University. The work was published in Physical Review X, one of the most distinguished journals in physics, 28 October 2016. The work was conducted in the Center of Excellence on Low Temperature Quantum Phenomena and Devices in the Academy of Finland, and it was partially funded by the European Research Council. Link to article: https://journals.aps.org/prx/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevX.6.041024 Further information: Professor Mika Sillanpaa, Aalto University tel. +358 50 344 7330 mika.sillanpaa@aalto.fi Professor Tero Heikkila, University of Jyvaskyla tel. +358 40 805 4804 tero.t.heikkila@jyu.fi NEW YORK CITY (October 31, 2016)--The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation honored nine scientists with its 2016 Outstanding Achievement Prizes for their work in schizophrenia, mood disorders, child and adolescent psychiatry, and cognitive neuroscience. The award presentation took place on Friday, October 28th at the Foundation's 29th Annual National Awards Dinner, celebrating the transformative power of neuroscience and psychiatric research to improve the lives of people with mental illness, which affects one in five people. According to Foundation President and CEO Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., the Outstanding Achievement Prizes, which cover five categories, are among the most prestigious awards in the field of psychiatric research. The recipients were selected by the Foundation's Scientific Council, comprised of 173 leading experts across disciplines in brain and behavior research, including two Nobel laureates; the current director of the National Institute of Mental Health and four former directors; four recipients of the National Medal of Science; 13 members of the National Academy of Sciences; 26 chairs of psychiatry and neuroscience departments at leading medical institutions; and 55 members of the National Academy of Medicine. "These scientists have dedicated their lives to understanding complex psychiatric conditions in order to help millions of affected people and their families," said Dr. Borenstein. "We are proud to honor them and highlight the inspiring work of these outstanding scientists, teachers and mentors." The 2016 Outstanding Achievement Prizewinners are as follows: The Lieber Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Schizophrenia Research The Lieber Prize was established in 1987 by the late Constance E. Lieber, Foundation President Emerita, and her husband, Stephen A. Lieber, Chair of the Foundation's Board of Directors. Michael F. Green, Ph.D., Professor, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA; Director VA Research Enhancement Award Program (REAP) on Enhancing Community Integration for Homeless Veterans; and Director Treatment Unit, VA VISN 22 Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC) Dr. Green's clinical research laboratory explores the relationship between cognitive and social cognitive impairments in schizophrenia and activities of daily living. His team also explores the neural mechanisms of cognitive and social cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Dr. Green is a leading researcher in the evaluation of social cognitive retraining and novel pharmacological interventions to improve cognitive impairments. His laboratory also studies the determinants of community integration for homeless veterans, many of whom have psychotic disorders. His identification of the importance of cognition in schizophrenia launched the national Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) effort, and stimulated novel and innovative treatments for cognitive dysfunction. Stephen R. Marder, M.D., Daniel X. Freedman Professor of Psychiatry, Vice Chair for Education in Psychiatry and Director, Section on Psychosis, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA; Director VA Desert Pacific MIRECC; NARSAD Distinguished Investigator 2011. During his career, Dr. Marder has focused on pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches to improving the outcomes of serious mental illnesses, particularly schizophrenia. His clinical intervention research began with studies that evaluated strategies for reducing adverse side effects of antipsychotic medications, and studies that evaluated the interactions of psychosocial interventions and pharmacological approaches to improving the outcome of serious mental illnesses. Together with Dr. Green, his fellow Lieber Prize recipient, he led the NIMH-MATRICS initiative, which addressed key issues in the development of medications for improving cognition in schizophrenia. The Maltz Prize for Innovative & Promising Schizophrenia Research Established in 2005, the prize was renamed in 2016 in honor of Board Members Milton and Tamar Maltz. The Maltz Prize is awarded to an investigator who has undertaken innovative and promising research in schizophrenia. Winners are selected by the Lieber Prize recipient(s) of the same year. William P. Horan, Ph.D., Research Psychologist, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences University of California, Los Angles; Clinical Research Psychologist, Veterans Administration Greater Los Angeles; Faculty VA VISN 22 MIRECC; NARSAD Young Investigator 2008 and 2004 Dr. Horan conducts translational research to identify factors that contribute to difficulties in community integration among people with schizophrenia and other forms of psychosis, and has been a leader in the development of innovative treatments that may help patients improve the quality of their lives. More recently, he has begun applying this translational research approach to investigations of bipolar disorder and homelessness. In addition, he has focused on the development and validation of the Social Cognitive Skills Training Program for people with psychosis. The goal of this research is to develop new treatments that enable people with psychosis to live independently, pursue personally meaningful vocational and educational goals, and develop more satisfying social networks in the community. His work has led to a deeper understanding of the impairments in motivation and social behaviors that affect the lives of many people with schizophrenia, previously viewed by most clinicians as untreatable, and led to a new sense of optimism that these problems can be addressed in the clinic. Amanda McCleery, Ph.D., Assistant Research Psychologist, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System VISN 22 MIRECC; NARSAD Young Investigator 2015 Dr. McCleery's research focuses on cognitive predictors of functional outcome in schizophrenia and related conditions. Her recent work uses EEG techniques in conjunction with performance-based measures to better understand the nature of the relationships between early-stage information processing, higher-order cognition, and community functioning across phases of illness in schizophrenia. Her work is also informed by developmental psychopathology in order to gain a nuanced understanding of the trajectory of cognition over the course of illness to identify potential critical periods and targets for intervention, as well as possible mechanisms of change. The Colvin Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Mood Disorders Research Established in 1993 the prize was re-named in 2012 to honor a Foundation supporter, the late Oliver D. Colvin, Jr., who bequeathed the largest single contribution in the Foundation's history. Francis J. McMahon, M.D., Senior Investigator and Chief Human Genetics Branch National Institute of Mental Health Intramural Research Program; NARSAD Independent Investigator 2006 and 1998, and Young Investigator 1994 Dr. McMahon's research is aimed at discovering and characterizing genes involved in mood and anxiety disorders in order to develop better methods of diagnosis and treatment. For more than a decade, his work has focused on pharmacogenomics, including genetic studies of antidepressant outcome, lithium response, and treatment-resistant depression. Still in its early stages, pharmacogenomics underlies the increasing interest in personalized and precision medicine, promising to reduce trial and error in the selection of the most effective treatments, while minimizing adverse events. Thomas G. Schulze, M.D., Professor and Director Institute of Psychiatric Phenomics and Genomics (IPPG) Medical Center of the University of Munich; Adjunct Faculty, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University; Associate Investigator Human Genetics Branch, National Institute of Mental Health Intramural Program; NARSAD Young Investigator 2007 and 2002 Dr. Schulze's research focuses on genotype-phenotype relationships in psychiatric disorders. He coordinates a German-wide center grant on longitudinal psychosis research and spearheads an international study on the genetic basis of response to lithium treatment in bipolar disorder, comprising several research groups from Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Australia. In addition, he and his team have embarked on population-based genetic studies in Ethiopia, focusing on the interplay of khat abuse (a plant that is used as a drug), trauma, and psychosis. Within the framework of a German government-funded, multi-site network, he is entrusted with the job of setting up a national federated biobanking and phenotyping platform. Pamela Sklar, M.D., Ph.D., Founding Chief, Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Vice-Chair, Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Professor, Departments of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, and Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine Mount Sinai; Foundation Scientific Council Member, NARSAD Independent Investigator 2006, and Young Investigator 1998 and 1995 Dr. Sklar's pioneering work in the genetic basis of bipolar disorder has led to a new understanding of the condition and potential treatments. In addition to her breakthrough discovery that schizophrenia is caused by genetic risk factors that overlap with bipolar disorder, Dr. Sklar's lab identified the first replicated genetic finding in bipolar disorder, identified two novel deletions strongly associated with schizophrenia, and identified the complex polygenic molecular nature of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Dr. Sklar is developing programs in genetics and translational research in the areas of next-generation sequencing, stem cell biology, proof-of-concept drug trials, and large-scale sample collections. Her team, comprised of experts in statistical genetics, stem cell biology, neurocognition, and imaging, is pioneering ways to translate genetic insights into the clinical practice of psychiatry. The Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research The Ruane Prize was initiated in 2000 by philanthropists Joy and William Ruane, and recognizes significant advances in research toward the understanding and treatment of early-onset brain and behavior disorders. John L.R. Rubenstein, M.D., Ph.D., Nina Ireland Distinguished Professor in Child Psychiatry, University of California at San Francisco; Foundation Scientific Council Member, NARSAD Distinguished Investigator 1997, and Young Investigator 1992 and 1990 Dr. Rubenstein's genetic analyses of frontal lobe development led to identification of genes that are associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders. He has made major contributions to understanding fundamental mechanisms of forebrain development, including studies on forebrain organization, patterning centers, transcription factors that control regional specification of brain and craniofacial subdivisions, the linking of regional and cell type specification in the telencephalon, the demonstration that cortical inhibitory neurons are generated in the basal ganglia and tangentially migrate to the cortex, and the postnatal differentiation of cortical inhibitory neurons. His studies have implications on mechanisms underlying several developmental disorders, such as autism and epilepsy. The Goldman-Rakic Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Cognitive Neuroscience The Goldman-Rakic Prize was created by Constance and Stephen Lieber in memory of Dr. Patricia Goldman-Rakic, a neuroscientist renowned for discoveries about the brain's frontal lobe, who died in an automobile accident in 2003. Earl K. Miller, Ph.D., Picower Professor of Neuroscience, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Building on Pat Goldman-Rakic's groundbreaking studies, Dr. Miller's work in primates has broken new ground in the understanding of cognition. Using innovative experimental and theoretical approaches to study the neural basis of high-level cognitive functions, his laboratory has provided insights into how categories, concepts, and rules are learned, how attention is focused, and how the brain coordinates thought and action. The laboratory has innovated techniques for studying the activity of many neurons in multiple brain areas simultaneously, providing insight into how different brain structures interact and collaborate. This work has established a foundation upon which to construct more detailed, mechanistic accounts of how executive control is implemented in the brain and its dysfunction in diseases such as autism, schizophrenia and attention deficit disorder, and has led to new approaches relevant to severe mental illnesses in children and adults. ### About the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation is committed to alleviating the suffering of mental illness by awarding grants that will lead to advances and breakthroughs in scientific research. The Foundation funds the most innovative ideas in neuroscience and psychiatry to better understand the causes and develop new ways to treat brain and behavior disorders. These disorders include depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, borderline personality disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Since 1987, the Foundation has awarded more than $360 million to fund more than 5,000 grants to more than 4,000 leading scientists around the world. This has led to over $3.5 billion in additional funding for these scientists. The Foundation is also dedicated to educating the public about mental health and the importance of research, including the impact that new discoveries have on improving the lives of those with mental illness, which will ultimately enable people to live full, happy and productive lives. For more information, visit http://www.bbrfoundation.org. October 31, 2016 -Chinese Academy of Sciences and Clarivate Analytics today released "Research Fronts 2016", an annual report identifying prominent areas of scientific research over the past year. This is the third collaborative report from these two organizations. The joint paper identifies 180 key research fronts including 100 hot and 80 emerging fronts, based on a comprehensive analysis of scientific literature citations. The analysis generated 12,188 research fronts in the Essential Science Indicators (ESI) database from 2009 until 2015. Research fronts are specialties discovered when scientists cite one another's work, reflecting a specific commonality in the research, which can be experimental data, a concept or hypothesis or even a method. Working in collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Clarivate bibliometric experts utilized the ESI database, a web-based research analytics platform and a unique compilation of science performance metrics and trend data based on scholarly paper publication counts and citation data from the Web of ScienceTM. Once identified, the research fronts built on recently published "core" or foundational journal articles. The 2016 report also features an analysis of the current and potential performance of six leading countries in the 180 research fronts -- USA, China, the UK, Germany, France and Japan. Analysts at the the Institutes of Science and Development and the National Science Library of the Chinese Academy of Sciences also analyzed the 180 research fronts provided by Clarivate in great depth and interpreted it to highlight 28 research fronts of particular interest. ### Read the full report: "Research Fronts 2016." Learn more about Essential Science IndicatorsSM, InCites and Web of Science. About Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences is the linchpin of China's drive to explore and harness high technology and the natural sciences for the benefit of China and the world. Comprising a comprehensive research and development network, a merit-based learned society and a system of higher education, CAS brings together scientists and engineers from China and around the world to address both theoretical and applied problems using world-class scientific and management approaches. Since its founding, CAS has fulfilled multiple roles -- as a national team and a locomotive driving national technological innovation, a pioneer in supporting nationwide S&T development, a think tank delivering S&T advice and a community for training young S&T talent. For more information, please visit http://english.cas.cn/. About Clarivate Analytics ClarivateTM Analytics accelerates the pace of innovation by providing trusted insights and analytics to customers around the world, enabling them to discover, protect and commercialize new ideas, faster. Formerly the Intellectual Property and Science business of Thomson Reuters, we've been assisting our customers for over 60 years. Now as an independent company with over 4,000 employees, operating in more than 100 countries around the world, we remain expert, objective and agile. For more information, please visit us at Clarivate.com. In a household survey of registered voters across New York State, a majority of respondents said that police officers involved in the 2014 arrest and death of Eric Garner should have been indicted; after watching video of the encounter, that proportion jumped from 57 percent to 71 percent. A majority of respondents supported Governor Andrew Cuomos call for expanded authority to appoint a special prosecutor in cases where police are involved in civilian deaths. The study by graduate students at Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health is perhaps the first to explore voter opinion around police accountability in the context of an arrest video. Results appear in the Journal of Social Service Research. Under the tutelage of Les Roberts, a professor of Population and Family Health, the students conducted door-to-door surveys of 119 registered New York State voters with sample selection proportional to the states population size. Surveyors assessed whether respondents were familiar with the case (85 percent were), if they had seen Eric Garners arrest video (74 percent did), whether they thought the officers involved should face trial (57 percent agreed), and whether respondents agreed with Governor Cuomos proposal to make Executive Order 147 (EO 147) permanent (57 percent did). Given the unfortunately polarized state of the nation surrounding police brutality, the authors write, it is imperative that policy and lawmakers throughout the country generate legislation that considers the views of their constituency to hold law enforcement officers accountable for their actions. During the survey, students asked respondents if they could show them the 51-second video (with audio) of Eric Garners interaction with police; respondents were cautioned about violent content and given background on the Garner case and EO 147. The bystander-recorded video begins before the moment of physical confrontation and shows New York Police Department (NYPD) Officer Daniel Pantaleo, who is white, administering a chokehold on Garner, an African-American, and forcing him to the ground. Garner is repeatedly heard saying, I cant breathe, before losing consciousness and later dying. The 13 African-Americans interviewed were twice as likely as whites to believe the officers should have gone to trial. However, after watching the video, this difference reduced by 80 percent, to 1.2 times more likely. Most of the difference was done away with a 51-second video, says Roberts. I find it incredibly encouraging that if you can get people on a politically charged issue to look at the same evidence that the differential in the lenses that they carry with them can largely disappear. The physical force police used on Eric Garner was the number-one factor respondents cited when discussing their opinion as to whether officers should face trial. It was also the number-one factor cited for respondents who changed their mind from Dont Know to Yes after watching the video. The study was conceived out of the outrage by students around the failure of a Staten Island Grand Jurys decision to not indict Officer Pantaleo in late 2014. The specific charges by the Staten Island District Attorney were not made public because the Grand Jury was sealed (a charge like first degree murder would have set the bar unreasonably high for an indictment). In the wake of the decision, some pointed to the potential of a conflict of interest between district attorneys and the police with whom they work closely and whose evidence they rely on for criminal cases. Facing intense pressure from advocates for police accountability, Governor Cuomo signed Executive Order 147 on July 8, 2015, appointing the New York State Attorney General as a special prosecutor in cases where law enforcement officers are involved in civilian deaths. In light of the fact that the Governors Order will expire, State legislators have introduced bills that would establish a permanent mechanism for a similar method of oversight, but so far none has passed. The paper also includes a review of prior research and reporting on racial disparities in criminal justice. It quotes statements by NYPD Officer Edwin Raymond, who criticized the Department for inherently racist tactics such as illegal quotas and attention to quality of life offenses. The researchers quote an estimate from the Human Rights Data Analysis Group that there are 1,500 officer-involved lethal shootings yearlyabout 10 percent of all homicides in the U.S., or 30 percent of homicides committed by strangers. Our study shows the power of a single cell phone video to shed light on, and shape opinions surrounding, police misconduct, says Sara A. Snyder, the papers first author. Snyder graduated in May with an MPH in Public Health and Humanitarian Assistance from Columbias Mailman School and is currently pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology at Long Island University. Further research is needed to understand footage of excessive force or officer-induced deaths, and whether they were filmed by police or civilians, can affect the aftermath of these incidents, including both the potential for violence and the possibility of justice. ### About Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health Founded in 1922, Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health pursues an agenda of research, education, and service to address the critical and complex public health issues affecting New Yorkers, the nation and the world. The Mailman School is the third largest recipient of NIH grants among schools of public health. Its over 450 multi-disciplinary faculty members work in more than 100 countries around the world, addressing such issues as preventing infectious and chronic diseases, environmental health, maternal and child health, health policy, climate change & health, and public health preparedness. It is a leader in public health education with over 1,300 graduate students from more than 40 nations pursuing a variety of masters and doctoral degree programs. The Mailman School is also home to numerous world-renowned research centers including ICAP (formerly the International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs) and the Center for Infection and Immunity. For more information, please visit https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/. Media contact: Tim Paul, 212-305-2676, tp2111@columbia.edu Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers have identified a mechanism that causes low clouds - and their influence on Earth's energy balance - to respond differently to global warming depending on their spatial pattern. The results imply that studies relying solely on recent observed trends are likely to underestimate how much Earth will warm due to increased carbon dioxide. The research appears in the Oct. 31 edition of the journal, Nature Geosciences. The research focused on clouds, which influence Earth's climate by reflecting incoming solar radiation and reducing outgoing thermal radiation. As the Earth's surface warms, the net radiative effect of clouds also changes, contributing a feedback to the climate system. If these cloud changes enhance the radiative cooling of the Earth, they act as a negative, dampening feedback on warming. Otherwise, they act as a positive, amplifying feedback on warming. The amount of global warming due to increased carbon dioxide is critically dependent on the sign and magnitude of the cloud feedback, making it an area of intense research. The researchers showed that the strength of the cloud feedback simulated by a climate model exhibits large fluctuations depending on the time period. Despite having a positive cloud feedback in response to long-term projected global warming, the model exhibits a strong negative cloud feedback over the last 30 years. At the heart of this difference are low-level clouds in the tropics, which strongly cool the planet by reflecting solar radiation to space. "With a combination of climate model simulations and satellite observations, we found that the trend of low-level cloud cover over the last three decades differs substantially from that under long-term global warming" said Chen Zhou, lead author of the paper. "The key difference is the spatial pattern of global warming", said Mark Zelinka, LLNL climate scientists and co-author of the study. "Not every degree of global warming is created equal, in terms of its effect on low clouds." In response to increased carbon dioxide, climate models predict a nearly uniform warming of the planet that favors reductions in highly reflective low clouds and a positive feedback. In contrast, over the last 30 years, tropical surface temperatures have increased in regions where air ascends and decreased where air descends. "This particular pattern of warming is nearly optimal for enhancing low cloud coverage because it increases low-level atmospheric stability that keeps the lower atmosphere moist and cloudy", said Stephen Klein, the third co-author. "Most satellite data starts around 1980, so linear trends over the last three decades are often used to make inferences about long-term global warming and to estimate climate sensitivity," said LLNL's Chen Zhou, lead author of the study. "Our results indicate that cloud feedback and climate sensitivity calculated from recently observed trends may be underestimated, since the warming pattern during this period is so unique." Global temperature has gradually increased over the instrumental record due to increased greenhouse gas concentrations. But superimposed on this warming are large temperature fluctuations due to natural internal variability of the climate system, as well as influences from volcanic eruptions, aerosol pollution and solar variability. Whereas warming due to CO2 tends to be relatively spatially uniform, surface temperature trends due to internal climate variability and aerosol pollution are highly non-uniform, with trends on one side of an ocean basin often opposing those on the other. Trends computed over short time periods are often strongly influenced by factors other than CO2 and can be highly misleading indicators of what to expect under CO2-forced global warming. The team emphasized that clouds are particularly sensitive to subtle differences in surface warming patterns, and researchers must carefully account for such pattern effects when making inferences about cloud feedback and climate sensitivity from observations over short time periods. ### The work was funded by the Regional and Global Climate Modeling Program of the Office of Science at the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) under the project "Identifying Robust Cloud Feedbacks in Observations and Models." Founded in 1952, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory provides solutions to our nation's most important national security challenges through innovative science, engineering and technology. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is managed by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration. Amsterdam, October 27, 2016 Simple images designed to convey information about prescription drugs could help save lives and reduce the economic burden of non-adherence to treatment. New research published in Applied Ergonomics shows that including pictograms on written medication instructions helps seniors take their drugs correctly. Patients with multiple prescriptions can easily get confused and take the wrong medication, leading to hospitalization and even death. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the cost of non-adherence to prescriptions, by taking the medicine at the wrong dose, time or frequency, is between $100-289 billion every year. Prescription Medication Tragedies Could Be Prevented by Simple Pictures Nine different pharmaceutical pictograms that could help older people understand written medical information. The researchers behind the study, from the City University of Hong Kong, say health professionals could include pictograms on any written medication information to help patients and free up medical resources. "Drugs are necessary to treat diseases and relieve symptoms, however, improper use of drugs can lead to serious consequences such as stomach bleeding and poisoning. We wanted to see if supplementary pictograms could help older people understand how to take their medication safely," explained Dr. Annie Ng, lead author from the City University of Hong Kong. In the new study, the researchers asked seniors to read and understand the medical instructions printed on five different drugs. One group received this information using plain text and the other group were provided with a range of pictograms to support the text. Dr. Ng and her colleagues found that including pictograms on a prescription drug label does help older people understand medical information and instructions. The pictograms provided information such as "take with meals" or "do not leave in direct sunlight" and warnings such as "poison" and "do not leave near children." "Information on medicine labels can sometimes be confusing, especially if a patient has several medications to contend with. Including a few simple pictures on a medicine label helps older people to read and understand this information. This not only prevents accidental overdose, it relieves some of the pressure that our aging population is putting on the health service by avoiding preventable tragedies," Dr. Ng added. For the study, a group of 50 people aged 65 to 84 had to complete a medical information comprehension task. They were educated to varying levels, from primary to university level, and all had normal or corrected-to-normal vision. They each took one of five drugs commonly used by older people. The team found that participants with a lower education level demonstrated a poorer understanding of the medication information. This, the researchers say, means it is important to give extra consideration to seniors with lower levels of education. The researchers chose to focus on seniors as they form the largest group of medication users and are more likely to suffer from multiple chronic diseases, therefore taking multiple drug therapies. Physicians explain to their patients how to take medication, but when faced with an array of pills, older patients only remember about 20-60 percent of the instructions they've heard. "We focused on seniors but we believe this research could help a much wider demographic," concluded Dr. Ng. "People with vision problems or difficulties comprehending basic written information, for example, will be able to better understand their medication needs, which will help their health and support their independence." ### Read more on Elsevier Connect. Notes for editors The article is "Comprehension by older people of medication information with or without supplementary pharmaceutical pictograms," by Annie W.Y. Ng, Alan H.S. Chan amd Vincy W.S. Ho (doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2016.06.005). It appears in Applied Ergonomics, volume 58 (2017), published by Elsevier. Copies of this paper are available to credentialed journalists upon request; please contact Elsevier's Newsroom at newsroom@elsevier.com or +31 20 485 2492. About Applied Ergonomics Applied Ergonomics is aimed at ergonomists and all those interested in applying ergonomics/human factors in the design, planning and management of technical and social systems at work or leisure. Readership is truly international with subscribers in over 50 countries. Professionals for whom Applied Ergonomics is of interest include: ergonomists, designers, industrial engineers, health and safety specialists, systems engineers, design engineers, organizational psychologists, occupational health specialists and human-computer interaction specialists. About Elsevier Elsevier is a world-leading provider of information solutions that enhance the performance of science, health, and technology professionals, empowering them to make better decisions, deliver better care, and sometimes make groundbreaking discoveries that advance the boundaries of knowledge and human progress. Elsevier provides web-based, digital solutions -- among them ScienceDirect, Scopus, Research Intelligence and ClinicalKey-- and publishes over 2,500 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and more than 35,000 book titles, including a number of iconic reference works. Elsevier is part of RELX Group, a world-leading provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries. http://www.elsevier.com CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Spinach is no longer just a superfood: By embedding leaves with carbon nanotubes, MIT engineers have transformed spinach plants into sensors that can detect explosives and wirelessly relay that information to a handheld device similar to a smartphone. This is one of the first demonstrations of engineering electronic systems into plants, an approach that the researchers call "plant nanobionics." "The goal of plant nanobionics is to introduce nanoparticles into the plant to give it non-native functions," says Michael Strano, the Carbon P. Dubbs Professor of Chemical Engineering at MIT and the leader of the research team. In this case, the plants were designed to detect chemical compounds known as nitroaromatics, which are often used in landmines and other explosives. When one of these chemicals is present in the groundwater sampled naturally by the plant, carbon nanotubes embedded in the plant leaves emit a fluorescent signal that can be read with an infrared camera. The camera can be attached to a small computer similar to a smartphone, which then sends an email to the user. "This is a novel demonstration of how we have overcome the plant/human communication barrier," says Strano, who believes plant power could also be harnessed to warn of pollutants and environmental conditions such as drought. Strano is the senior author of a paper describing the nanobionic plants in the Oct. 31 issue of Nature Materials. The paper's lead author is Min Hao Wong, an MIT graduate student who has started a company called Plantea to further develop this technology. Environmental monitoring Two years ago, in the first demonstration of plant nanobionics, Strano and former MIT postdoc Juan Pablo Giraldo used nanoparticles to enhance plants' photosynthesis ability and to turn them into sensors for nitric oxide, a pollutant produced by combustion. Plants are ideally suited for monitoring the environment because they already take in a lot of information from their surroundings, Strano says. "Plants are very good analytical chemists," he says. "They have an extensive root network in the soil, are constantly sampling groundwater, and have a way to self-power the transport of that water up into the leaves." Strano's lab has previously developed carbon nanotubes that can be used as sensors to detect a wide range of molecules, including hydrogen peroxide, the explosive TNT, and the nerve gas sarin. When the target molecule binds to a polymer wrapped around the nanotube, it alters the tube's fluorescence. In the new study, the researchers embedded sensors for nitroaromatic compounds into the leaves of spinach plants. Using a technique called vascular infusion, which involves applying a solution of nanoparticles to the underside of the leaf, they placed the sensors into a leaf layer known as the mesophyll, which is where most photosynthesis takes place. They also embedded carbon nanotubes that emit a constant fluorescent signal that serves as a reference. This allows the researchers to compare the two fluorescent signals, making it easier to determine if the explosive sensor has detected anything. If there are any explosive molecules in the groundwater, it takes about 10 minutes for the plant to draw them up into the leaves, where they encounter the detector. To read the signal, the researchers shine a laser onto the leaf, prompting the nanotubes in the leaf to emit near-infrared fluorescent light. This can be detected with a small infrared camera connected to a Raspberry Pi, a $35 credit-card-sized computer similar to the computer inside a smartphone. The signal could also be detected with a smartphone by removing the infrared filter that most camera phones have, the researchers say. "This setup could be replaced by a cell phone and the right kind of camera," Strano says. "It's just the infrared filter that would stop you from using your cell phone." Using this setup, the researchers can pick up a signal from about 1 meter away from the plant, and they are now working on increasing that distance. "A wealth of information" In the 2014 plant nanobionics study, Strano's lab worked with a common laboratory plant known as Arabidopsis thaliana. However, the researchers wanted to use common spinach plants for the latest study, to demonstrate the versatility of this technique. "You can apply these techniques with any living plant," Strano says. So far, the researchers have also engineered spinach plants that can detect dopamine, which influences plant root growth, and they are now working on additional sensors, including some that track the chemicals plants use to convey information within their own tissues. "Plants are very environmentally responsive," Strano says. "They know that there is going to be a drought long before we do. They can detect small changes in the properties of soil and water potential. If we tap into those chemical signaling pathways, there is a wealth of information to access." These sensors could also help botanists learn more about the inner workings of plants, monitor plant health, and maximize the yield of rare compounds synthesized by plants such as the Madagascar periwinkle, which produces drugs used to treat cancer. "These sensors give real-time information from the plant. It is almost like having the plant talk to us about the environment they are in," Wong says. "In the case of precision agriculture, having such information can directly affect yield and margins." ### An ongoing challenge for scientists working to understand the brain is being able to see all its parts. Researchers have spent centuries developing better imaging techniques to see beyond the abilities of our naked eyes. They've built microscopes that gather information down to the electron level. They've engineered fluorescent tags that make cells and structures of interest more visible. One of the most effective imaging techniques for neuroscientists has been the combination of FRET (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) and FLIM (Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy). This duo gives scientists the power to view biochemical dynamics of proteins with high spatial and temporal accuracy, while also allowing them to calculate the minuscule distances between molecules in real time. At the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (MPFI), researchers in Ryohei Yasuda's laboratory, such as postdoctoral researcher, Tal Laviv, Ph.D., have been working to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of learning and memory. The team has been using FRET-FLIM to study the activity of proteins in dendritic spines, protrusions that form off of neuronal branches, and make synaptic connections and communicate with other neurons. Dendritic spines are known to emerge, change shape, and even disappear over a lifetime, and these changes are considered the cellular basis for learning and memory. These imaging techniques were a key factor in helping the team elucidate some of the molecular mechanisms behind this type of plasticity. Nonetheless, there is an important limitation in using these techniques to understand how multiple types of proteins and molecules interact in living samples. There is only one FRET donor tag (GFP) that will work within a FLIM protocol, so if researchers want to study two proteins, they'll investigate "Protein A" in one set of experiments, following an additional set of experiments to examine "Protein B" activity. Following these experiments, the researchers will need to draw conclusions about how these two proteins interact based on these two sets of experiments. This not only increases the amount of time it takes to study multiple proteins, but also makes it more difficult to analyze how they interact in space and time. "For those types of systems," explained Dr. Laviv, "it's crucial to look at as many proteins as possible at the same time to correlate their activities." Researchers at Stanford University, from the research team of Dr. Michael Lin, which specializes in building protein based tools for molecular imaging, reached out to the Yasuda Lab at MPFI after they identified a new set of red fluorescent proteins, or RFPs, named CyRFPs. They suggested this new set of RFPs could be used in combination with GFP for simultaneous imaging. To determine if this could work, the scientists tested the ability to visualize dendritic spine structure and function using CyRFP and a GFP-based calcium bio-sensor. Using this combination, they were able to monitor the structure and function of spines in real time, even in the brains of living animals. Finally, the team tweaked a variant of CyRFP, which now could be used as a fluorescent FRET donor a part of a FRET pair, named monomeric cyan-excitable red fluorescent protein (mCyRFP1). Scientists in the Yasuda Lab conducted a series of experiments to test the newly proposed FRET pair alongside a GFP bionsensor. The technique allowed them to view, for the first time, the activities of two signaling molecules within a single dendritic spine as the spine was undergoing synaptic plasticity. A description of this new technique was published on October 31, 2016 in Nature Methods. Dr. Laviv explains that the new technique will increase both accuracy and efficiency of FRET-FLIM imaging experiments and could potentially increase our understanding of how learning and memory ultimately alters the structure and function of dendritic spines. ### This work was supported by grants from Human Frontiers Science Program, NSF Graduate Fellowship, a Siebel Scholar Award, National Institute of Health grants R01MH080047, 1DP1NS096787, 1U01NS090600 and P50GM107615, a Burroughs Wellcome Foundation Career Award for Medical Scientists, a Rita Allen Foundation Scholar Award and the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience. About Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience The Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (Jupiter, Florida, USA) specializes in the development and application of novel technologies for probing the structure, function, and development of neural circuits. It is the first research institute of the Max Planck Society in the United States. In the age of fast-paced global communication, it's no wonder that teasing apart the anatomy of the new mineral merelaniite took a team from around the world. Most mineral discoveries start with boots on the ground--or, 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. "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 John Jaszczak, a physics professor at Michigan Tech and the lead author on a new study published in Minerals that describes the new mineral. "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) receive 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, Jaszzak and his team put the tiny merelaniite whiskers through a battery of rigorous tests, particularly to discern its 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. 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 Tech's Applied Chemical & Morphological Analysis Laboratory. The growing team then sought out 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. The layers curve inward, growing into a scroll-like cylinder. 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 we're delighted to have uncovered and described this beautiful new mineral." ### Portland, Oregon, Oct. 31, 2016 - When it comes to prostate cancer biopsies, risk and reality don't always match up, according to research published online today in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Investigators from SWOG, the cancer clinical trials network funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), found widespread detection bias after a fresh examination of data from the two largest prostate cancer prevention trials ever conducted in the United States. SWOG Biostatistician Catherine Tangen, Dr.P.H., of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and her team reviewed data from over 17,000 men, including more than 2,200 diagnosed with prostate cancer over the course of the two landmark trials. The subject of an upcoming Nov. 7 JCO editorial, the research is the first systematic review of bias in prostate cancer biopsy patterns. The results surprised Tangen. "We assumed that prostate cancers are diagnosed uniformly, but that's not true," said Tangen, the lead author of the JCO article. "We found a lot of variation in who got a biopsy. Risk and reality often didn't line up. As a public health researcher, this concerns me. Bias can warp our understanding of the prostate cancer disease process - and misdirect our efforts to test new risk factors and prevention strategies in future research." Tangen and her team arrived at their findings by examining data from the placebo arms of two major SWOG prevention trials. One is the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT), which had the unique design feature of an end-of-study biopsy for all men - regardless of the results of their annual prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level test. This uniform biopsy provided unbiased data on cancer risk and could be considered the gold standard. The other trial was the Selenium and Vitamin E Chemoprevention Trial (SELECT). In SELECT, men received PSA testing and a digital rectal exam - and any ensuing biopsy recommendations - at the discretion of their doctor and based on their own preferences. These results reflect practices found in the general population. The SWOG team found that younger, healthier, better educated men, those with a family history of prostate cancer, and those who were married were more likely to undergo a prostate biopsy even after accounting for their PSA level. The investigators then evaluated the associations of risk factors with prostate cancer in SELECT (reflecting treatment of the general population) and then in PCPT (the gold standard) and checked to see if results were consistent. They found some major discrepancies. For example, men who took statin drugs on SELECT had a significantly reduced risk of prostate cancer, but in PCPT there was no association. They concluded that biases in who underwent prostate biopsy probably accounted for these very different results. On the flip side, researchers confirmed that men with a family history of prostate cancer and men with elevated PSA levels - both proven risk factors - did indeed develop cancer at higher rates than their peers. However, that association wasn't as strong in PCPT when biopsy bias was reduced. "The research community sometimes makes faulty conclusions about prostate cancer risk - assumptions that may lead to flawed screening decisions and incorrect choices about research directions," Tangen said. "Detection bias is introduced when screening information is not acted upon uniformly. That is a reasonable strategy for a doctor who is assessing an individual's risk profile and preferences. However, at the population level it can lead us to screen and biopsy men who are at low risk, and lead us to fail to screen and biopsy men who are at higher risk. In research, bias can cause us to waste precious time and money investigating the wrong risk factors. One wrong assumption can have a huge domino effect." JCO article co-author Dr. Ian Thompson of The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio is a urologic oncologist and long-time SWOG member who served as principal investigator on the PCPT trial and who was a leader in SELECT. Thompson said the new findings have big implications for cancer care and research. "In medicine, we don't want to do the wrong thing and in research, we don't want to look in the wrong places," Thompson said. "Our work shows we may be doing both in prostate cancer. As there are similar issues in other cancers such as breast and thyroid, this issue may occur for these tumors as well. So the message is this: Risk factors for cancer are very complex. Before we all leap to conclusions, we need to collect very detailed research data on who is screened and why and be very rigorous in our analysis of that data and what it might mean for clinical care." Tangen agreed: "In cancer research, we all want the truth. But we've found that we may just have to work harder to find it. There is a lot of noise out there." ### The NCI provided primary grant funding for the research through grants UM1 CA182883, P30 CA065174, U01 CA086402, and U10-CA37429. A team of SWOG researchers contributed to the study. Along with Tangen and Thompson, they include: Phyllis J. Goodman, M.S., Cathee Till, M.S., and Jeanette M. Schenk, Ph.D., of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, which serves as the statistical home for SWOG. Pathologist M. Scott Lucia, M.D. of the University of Colorado School of Medicine rounded out the study team. SWOG is part of the National Cancer Institute's National Clinical Trials Network, the nation's oldest and largest cancer research network, and is a major part of the cancer research infrastructure in the U.S. and the world. SWOG has over 12,000 members in 46 states and six foreign countries who design and conduct cancer clinical trials to improve the lives of people with cancer. Founded in 1956, SWOG's 1,300 trials have led to the approval of 14 cancer drugs, changed more than 100 standards of cancer care, and saved more than 2 million years of human life. Learn more at swog.org. For several years Manu Prakash, an assistant professor of bioengineering, has gone to field sites to test new, low-cost microscopes as a tool for diagnosing the parasitic disease schistosomiasis. The devices showed promise, but Prakash was perplexed by how often kids treated for the disease were getting re-infected. Prakash quickly turned his attention to preventing infections at the first place. This new focus led his team to think about a fundamental question in the transmission cycle: How does this parasite actually move in open water to infect a human host? They hope that by understanding the biophysics of how this parasite swims, it might be possible to hinder the movement and thwart infection. The results of this study are published in the Oct. 31 issue of Nature Physics. "We started thinking about the ecological context for the schistosomiasis disease cycle when, out in the field, we were seeing the terrible trauma it inflicts on people," said Prakash, senior author of the study. "It manifests over long periods of time, and if the water body near you is infected, there is a very high likelihood that you will get the disease. So, effectively, you can take drugs that could cure you for some time but you get re-infected again." A debilitating disease People become infected with schistosomiasis when the larval form of the parasite leaves the freshwater snail host, swims through the water and penetrates human skin. Once in a person, the larvae develop into adult schistosomes. The female parasites later release eggs, which are either passed out of the body through urine and stool or trapped in bodily tissues, triggering an immune response and large-scale organ damage. When the eggs from urine or stool enter a water body with the freshwater snail hosts, the cycle begins again. Schistosomiasis infection often produces abdominal pain, diarrhea and blood in the stool or urine. It can also cause learning deficiencies in children and an inability to work in adults that traps families in a poverty cycle. Over the years, adults can develop bladder cancer or severe kidney damage, which reduces their quality of life. In some cases the disease results in death. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 258 million people required preventive treatment for schistosomiasis in 2014, with an estimated 20,000 deaths. As with many other neglected tropical diseases, schistosomiasis disproportionately impacts people who live in poverty. These people are more likely to be vulnerable to infection because they often have less access to adequate sanitation or to safe water for drinking, chores, recreation, fishing or agriculture. Even after treatment, people are often re-infected through their constant contact with contaminated water. Where to start Prakash decided to investigate how schistosomiasis larvae swim to find a human host. This is a valuable question because, in its larval form, the parasite has no feeding mechanism and must find a host within about 12 hours or die. It stands to reason, then, that the larvae likely have some special, extremely efficient swimming skills. It turns out that hunch is correct. "This was unlike anything I had seen before," said Deepak Krishnamurthy, a PhD student in the Prakash Lab and lead author of the study. "When I looked at this parasite, I was fascinated by the fact that it was swimming in a completely different way as compared to any other microorganism I knew about. The parasite had a mysterious forked tail, something that has never been seen before in any other swimming microorganisms." The researchers used three different approaches to investigate this odd swimming stroke. They imaged live parasite larvae with high-speed microscopy, they created a mathematical model to understand how the parasite interacted with the surrounding fluid, and finally they translated that model into a scaled-up robotic swimmer as a physical extension to learn more about physical parameters at play. The T-swimmer While observing the larvae, the team noticed a few swimming styles that schistosomiasis larvae employ in different situations, and which differ primarily in the position of the forked tail. Of those, one stood out as unique. In this stroke, the larvae stick the tail out perpendicular from the body, like the letter T, prompting the researchers to dub them T-swimmers. The larvae switch to T-swimming when they are moving against gravity, which they seem to do in order to be near the water's surface, where they are most likely to find a human host. High-speed video of live larvae swimming allowed the researchers to examine in depth how this novel swimming style works. "We spent countless hours watching hundreds of these parasites swim - it's like an obsession," said Yorgos Katsikis, a former PhD student in the Prakash Lab and co-author of this study. "Then we developed image-processing algorithms that would process this data automatically without any experimental bias." These custom algorithms revealed in detail the exact kinematics of how the larvae bend their body and rotate their head, how fast they move and how they accelerate and decelerate and perturb the surrounding fluid. Creating models In parallel with direct observations, the researchers developed multiple mathematical and robotic models for how a T-swimmer could swim. The mathematical representations look like three rods, one representing the larvae's forked tail and the other two its bending tail and body. The robots were similarly structured and swam through corn syrup, a 10,000 times more viscous counterpart to the water the larvae infests, to recreate the same physical effects. With these models, they could make the model larvae do strokes that involved varying combinations of tail stiffness and bending movement. They even raced several robots, each with slight modifications in their tail stiffness. "In many cases, we try to replicate nature in robots. This was very different," said Krishnamurthy. "On the face of it, it looks like I'm trying to make a robot that swims like a parasite, but the truth is that it was the exact opposite: I was building a robot to actually understand how the biological parasite swims." What these models and various modifications revealed is the larvae's real swimming stroke was indeed the optimal version. Prakash and Krishnamurthy have been in Madagascar collecting infected snails and studying the ecology of this parasite in open water in rural villages. They hope their work in and out of the lab will help them understand how these parasites find humans and bring them one step closer to an ecological solution to this widespread disease. ### Additional Stanford co-authors on the paper include Arjun Bhargava, a former undergraduate student in the Prakash Lab. Prakash is a member of Stanford Bio-X, a faculty fellow at Stanford ChEM-H, an affiliate of the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment and a senior fellow of Center for Innovation in Global Health. Krishnamurthy is a Bio-X Bowes Fellow. This work was funded by a Stanford Bio-X Bowes Fellowship, the Pew Foundation, a Multidisciplinary University Research Initiatives grant, the Keck Foundation, a National Institutes of Health Directors New Innovator Award and scholarships from the Onassis Foundation and the A.G. Leventis Foundation. BOSTON (October 31, 2016)--Silencing SIRT2, a member of the sirtuin family of enzymes, reduces the invasiveness of basal-like breast cancer cells in culture and inhibits tumor growth in mice, according to new research led by scientists from Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts in Boston. The absence of SIRT2 appears to accelerate the degradation of Slug, a transcription factor that has previously been implicated in tumor progression and metastasis. The findings, published online in Cell Reports on Oct. 25, reveal underlying molecular mechanisms and potential new approaches to treat one of the deadliest breast cancer subtypes. "Breast cancer is not one disease, and of the several distinct subtypes, basal-like breast cancer represents the most aggressive form. By targeting a master transcription factor regulator in basal-like cells, we were able to reduce malignant behaviors," said senior study author Charlotte Kuperwasser, Ph.D., professor of developmental, molecular and chemical biology at Tufts University School of Medicine and director of the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Laboratory for the Convergence of Biomedical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences at Tufts. "Our findings now provide a molecular rationale for new approaches to help improve the poor clinical outcomes currently associated with these cancers." Estimated to account for up to 20 percent of all breast cancers, basal-like breast cancers are typically triple-negative (lacking HER2 and hormone receptors) and are often resistant to conventional chemo- or radiotherapy. As a result, few effective treatment options currently exist. A number of prior studies, including by Kuperwasser and colleagues, have indicated that the transcription factor Slug plays a central role--basal-like tumor cells commonly have an abnormal overabundance of Slug protein, and depleting Slug in laboratory experiments reduces tumor growth and aggressiveness. However, transcription factors are extremely difficult to target with drugs due to complex interactions with other genes and proteins. An Achilles' Heel? In the current study, Kuperwasser and her team worked to identify new targets better suited for therapeutic development by examining the molecular mechanisms that regulate Slug abundance. The researchers found that the sirtuin enzyme SIRT2 had the strongest stabilizing effect. In cultured basal-like tumor cells, silencing SIRT2 through the use of RNA interference molecules led to the rapid degradation of Slug, and caused Slug turnover rates to resemble those seen in normal, non-tumorous cells. This in turn significantly weakened key characteristics of malignant behavior. Without SIRT2, tumor cells had a more than 60 percent reduction in invasive capacity compared to normal basal-like tumor cells. SIRT2-depleted cells also had significantly decreased capacity for growth and self-renewal. This diminished malignancy could be reversed by artificially introducing Slug protein back into cells, demonstrating the direct and necessary relationship between SIRT2, Slug stability and malignant behavior. When the team transplanted SIRT2-depleted basal-like cancer cells into a mouse model of breast cancer, they found that tumor sizes were on average 80 percent smaller than those formed by normal basal-like cells. "The molecular interplay that drives aggressive basal-like breast cancer is quite complex and encompasses processes beyond the genetic level. It was unexpected that SIRT2, a sirtuin family member historically known for playing a role in metabolism and aging, also acts to regulate Slug protein and malignant tumor traits," said study author Wenhui Zhou, a M.D./Ph.D. student at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Cell, Molecular & Developmental Biology program at the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts. Sirtuin enzymes have previously been implicated in a wide range of cellular processes, such as aging, inflammation and energy expenditure. Their role in cancer is still unclear, but the team found that SIRT2 is highly expressed in basal-like breast cancers compared to other subtypes, based on data from almost 1,000 breast cancer cases from National Cancer Institute's The Cancer Genome Atlas. Due to the widespread presence of sirtuin enzymes, inhibiting SIRT2 directly in humans is likely to affect many other cellular processes, and targeting it requires highly specific inhibitors. Kuperwasser and her team are now exploring candidate inhibitors for efficacy and toxicity in animal tumor models. However, the team's work also revealed the mechanism by which SIRT2 stabilizes Slug--a process known as deacetylation, in which chemical modifications are made to Slug protein after it is created in the cell. Compounds that block specific sites involved in deacetylation on the Slug and SIRT2 proteins could interfere with their interaction, and may represent another effective strategy to target malignancy, according to the authors. "Cancer cells find sophisticated ways to regulate essential proteins they need for their survival and growth. The transcriptional factor Slug is one such protein and is often tightly regulated in both normal and cancer cells. While we have found that SIRT2 plays an important role in prolonging Slug expression, it is too soon to know whether targeting Sirt2 will be sufficient to abolish Slug entirely in cancer cells and therefore lead to tumor regression," said Kuperwasser, who is also a member of the genetics and cell, molecular & developmental biology program faculties at the Sackler School. "A significant amount of work remains to be done before we can verify if targeting SIRT2 can be an Achilles' heel for treating basal-like breast cancers." ### Additional authors of this study are Thomas K. Ni, Ph.D., American Cancer Society postdoctoral fellow in the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Convergence Laboratory at Tufts University School of Medicine, Ania Wronski, Ph.D., postdoctoral researcher in the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Convergence Laboratory at Tufts University School of Medicine, Benjamin Glass, research laboratory manager at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Adam Skibinski, M.D., Ph.D., who contributed to the study while a M.D./Ph.D. student at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School and who is now a diagnostic radiology resident at the University of Washington, and Andrew Beck, Ph.D., associate professor at Harvard Medical School in the department of pathology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. This study was supported by awards from the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Laboratory for the Convergence of Biomedical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences at Tufts, Art beCAUSE Breast Cancer Foundation, the American Cancer Society (PF-14-046-01-DMC), the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD073035) and the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (CA170851). Zhou and Skibinski were also supported by the Medical Scientist Training Program funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (GM008448) of the National Institutes of Health, a program that trains M.D./Ph.D. students to become the physician-scientists. Zhou, Wenhui et al. "The SIRT2 Deacetylase Stabilizes Slug to Control Malignancy of Basal-like Breast Cancer." Cell Reports, Volume 17, Issue 5, 1302 - 1317. DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2016.10.006 About Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences are international leaders in medical and population health education and advanced research. Tufts University School of Medicine emphasizes rigorous fundamentals in a dynamic learning environment to educate physicians, scientists, and public health professionals to become leaders in their fields. The School of Medicine and the Sackler School are renowned for excellence in education in general medicine, the biomedical sciences, and public health, as well as for research at the cellular, molecular, and population health level. The School of Medicine is affiliated with six major teaching hospitals and more than 30 health care facilities. Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School undertake research that is consistently rated among the highest in the nation for its effect on the advancement of medical and prevention science. Scientists have found a way to use satellites to track photosynthesis in evergreens -- a discovery that could improve our ability to assess the health of northern forests amid climate change. An international team of researchers used satellite sensor data to identify slight colour shifts in evergreen trees that show seasonal cycles of photosynthesis -- the process in which plants use sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose. Photosynthesis is easy to track in deciduous trees -- when leaves bud or turn yellow and fall off. But until recently, it had been impossible to detect in evergreen conifers on a large scale. "Photosynthesis is arguably the most important process on the planet, without which life as we know it would not exist," said John Gamon, lead researcher and a professor of biological sciences at the University of Alberta. "As the climate changes, plants respond -- their photosynthesis changes, their growing season changes. And if photosynthesis changes, that in turn further affects the atmosphere and climate." Through their CO2-consuming ways, plants have been slowing climate change far more than scientists previously realized. The "million-dollar question" is whether this will continue as the planet continues to warm due to human activity, Gamon said. Scientists have two hypotheses -- the first is that climate change and longer growing seasons will result in plants sucking up even more CO2, further slowing climate change. The other predicts a drop in photosynthetic activity due to drought conditions that stress plants, causing them to release CO2 into the atmosphere through a process called respiration -- thereby accelerating climate change. "If it's hypothesis one, that's helping us. If it's hypothesis two, that's pretty scary," said Gamon. The research team combined two different satellite bands -- one of which was used to study oceans and only recently made public by NASA -- to track seasonal changes in green (pigment created by chlorophyll) and yellow (created by carotenoid) needle colour. The index they developed provides a new tool to monitor changes in northern forests, which cover 14 per cent of all the land on Earth. Gamon has taken a leave of absence from the U of A to further the research, now funded by NASA, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His lab in the U.S. is reviewing 15 years' worth of satellite data on forests in Canada and Alaska to ultimately determine whether photosynthetic cycles are happening earlier because of climate change and whether forests are becoming more or less productive at converting CO2. "Those are key questions we haven't been able to answer for the boreal forest as a whole," he said. ### Researchers from the University of Toronto, University of North Carolina, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, University of Barcelona, NASA and the U.S. Forest Service collaborated on the project. Their findings were published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers investigated the impact of Extreme Climatic Events (ECEs) on butterfly populations. The study shows that the impact can be significantly positive and negative, but questions remain as to whether the benefits outweigh the negative effects. While it is well known that changes to the mean climate can affect ecosystems, little is known about the impact of short-term extreme climatic events (ECEs) such as heatwaves, heavy rainfall or droughts. Osgur McDermott-Long, PhD student and lead author from the School of Environmental Sciences at UEA, said: "This is the first study to examine the effects of extreme climate events across all life stages of the UK butterflies from egg to adult butterfly. We wanted to identify sensitive life stages and unravel the role that life history traits play in species sensitivity to ECEs." The researchers used data from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS), a high-quality long-term dataset of UK butterfly abundances collected from over 1,800 sites across the UK, spanning 37 years, to examine the effects of weather data and extreme events (drought, extremes of rain, heat and cold) on population change. The team looked at resident species of butterflies, those which only breed once in a year, and those having more than one brood annually. Multi-brood species were found to be more vulnerable than single brood species and in general extremes of temperature rather than precipitation were found to influence changes in butterfly populations. Dr Aldina Franco, co-author said: "A novel finding of this study was that precipitation during the pupal (cocoon) life-stage was detrimental to over one quarter of the species. This study also found that extreme heat during the 'overwintering' life stage was the most detrimental extreme weather event affecting over half of UK species. This may be due to increased incidences of disease or potentially extreme hot temperatures acting as a cue for butterflies or their larvae to come out from overwintering too early and subsequently killed off by temperatures returning to colder conditions." In addition to the negative impacts, the authors found that some life stages may benefit from climatic extreme weather, with extreme heat in the adult stage causing a positive population change in over one third of the UK species. Dr Franco, added: "This is not an unexpected finding given that butterflies are warm loving creatures. Years with extreme warm summers and winters may have mixed effects. For example, this year was terrible for butterflies, although the summer was warm the number of butterflies counted during the Big Butterfly Count was particularly low. Our study indicates that this could have resulted from the detrimental effects of the warm winter, for example the recent low counts1 of Gatekeeper, Common Blue, Comma, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell butterflies could be explained by our results due to their negative response to warm winters which was just experienced2". Mr McDermott Long said: "The study has demonstrated previously unknown sensitivities of our UK butterflies to extreme climatic events, which are becoming more frequent with climate change. Some of these effects are undoubtedly putting future populations at risk, such as extremely warm winters, however we've seen that warm and even climatically extreme hot summers may actually benefit butterflies. Further research is needed regarding the balance of the importance that these variables could have, to see if the benefits of warmer summers will be outweighed by the detrimental winter effects". Dr Tom Brereton from Butterfly Conservation and a co-author of the study, said: "If we are to mitigate against extreme events as part of conservation efforts, in particular, we need a better understanding of the habitat conditions which can lead to successful survival of adult, pupal and overwintering life stages of UK butterflies in these situations." ### This work is part of Osgur McDermott-Long's PhD project funded by the University of East Anglia and with Butterfly Conservation and the Biological Records Centre as project partners. Prof Rachel Warren, Dr Aldina Franco and Dr Jeff Price and are the PhD supervisors. External co-authors include Dr Tom Brereton from Butterfly Conservation and Dr Marc Botham from Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. 'Sensitivity of UK butterflies to local climatic extremes: which life stages are most at risk?' is published in The Journal of Animal Ecology on 31/10/2016. 1 http://www.bigbutterflycount.org/2016mainresults 2 http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/news/releases/2016/winter-statistics The moon, Earth's closest neighbor, is among the strangest planetary bodies in the solar system. Its orbit lies unusually far away from Earth, with a surprisingly large orbital tilt. Planetary scientists have struggled to piece together a scenario that accounts for these and other related characteristics of the Earth-moon system. A new research paper, based on numerical models of the moon's explosive formation and the evolution of the Earth-moon system, comes closer to tying up all the loose ends than any other previous explanation. The work, published in the October 31, 2016 Advance Online edition of the journal Nature, suggests that the impact that formed the moon also caused calamitous changes to Earth's rotation and the tilt of its spin axis. The research suggests that the impact sent the Earth spinning much faster, and at a much steeper tilt, than it does today. In the several billion years since that impact, complex interactions between the Earth, moon and sun have smoothed out many of these changes, resulting in the Earth-moon system that we see today. In this scenario, the remaining anomalies in the moon's orbit are relics of the Earth-moon system's explosive past. "Evidence suggests a giant impact blasted off a huge amount of material that formed the moon," said Douglas Hamilton, professor of astronomy at the University of Maryland and a co-author of the Nature paper. "This material would have formed a ring of debris first, then the ring would have aggregated to form the moon. But this scenario does not quite work if the Earth's spin axis was tilted at the 23.5 degree angle we see today." Collisional physics calls for this ring of debris--and thus the moon's orbit immediately after formation--to lie in Earth's equatorial plane. As tidal interactions between the Earth and the moon drove the moon further away from Earth, the moon should have shifted from Earth's equatorial plane to the "ecliptic" plane, which corresponds to the Earth's orbit around the sun. But today, instead of being in line with the ecliptic plane, the moon's orbit is tilted five degrees away from it. "This large tilt is very unusual. Until now, there hasn't been a good explanation," Hamilton said. " But we can understand it if the Earth had a more dramatic early history than we previously suspected." Hamilton, with lead author Matija Cuk of the SETI institute and their colleagues Simon Lock of Harvard University and Sarah Stewart of the University of California, Davis, tried many different scenarios. But the most successful ones involved a moon-forming impact that sent the Earth spinning extremely fast--as much as twice the rate predicted by other models. The impact also knocked the Earth's tilt way off, to somewhere between 60 and 80 degrees. "We already suspected that the Earth must have spun especially fast after the impact" Cuk said. "An early high tilt for Earth enables our planet to lose that excess spin more readily." The model also suggests that the newly-formed moon started off very close to Earth, but then drifted away--to nearly 15 times its initial distance. As it did so, the sun began to exert a more powerful influence over the moon's orbit. According to the researchers, both factors--a highly tilted, fast spinning Earth and an outwardly-migrating moon--contributed to establishing the moon's current weird orbit. The newborn moon's orbit most likely tracked the Earth's equator, tilted at a steep 60-80 degree angle that matched Earth's tilt. A key finding of the new research is that, if the Earth was indeed tilted by more than 60 degrees after the moon formed, the moon could not transition smoothly from Earth's equatorial plane to the ecliptic plane. Instead, the transition was abrupt and left the moon with a large tilt relative to the ecliptic-- much larger than is observed today. "As the moon moved outward, the Earth's steep tilt made for a more chaotic transition as the sun became a bigger influence," Cuk said. "Subsequently, and over billions of years, the moon's tilt slowly decayed down to the five degrees we see today. So today's five degree tilt is a relic and a signature of a much steeper tilt in the past." Hamilton acknowledges that the model doesn't answer all the remaining questions about the moon's orbit. But the model's strength, he says, is that it offers a framework for answering new questions in the future. "There are many potential paths from the moon's formation to the Earth-moon system we see today. We've identified a few of them, but there are sure to be other possibilities," Hamilton said. "What we have now is a model that is more probable and works more cleanly than previous attempts. We think this is a significant improvement that gets us closer to what actually happened." ### The research paper, "Tidal Evolution of the Moon from a High-Obliquity High-Angular-Momentum Earth," Matija Cuk, Douglas Hamilton, Simon Lock, and Sarah Stewart, appears in the October 31, 2016 Advance Online edition of the journal Nature. This work was supported by NASA (Award No. NNX15AH65G). The content of this article does not necessarily reflect the views of this organization. Media Relations Contact: Matthew Wright, 301-405-9267, mewright@umd.edu University of Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences 2300 Symons Hall College Park, MD 20742 http://www.cmns.umd.edu @UMDscience About the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences The College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences at the University of Maryland educates more than 7,000 future scientific leaders in its undergraduate and graduate programs each year. The college's 10 departments and more than a dozen interdisciplinary research centers foster scientific discovery with annual sponsored research funding exceeding $150 million. PITTSBURGH--For as long as scientists have been listening in on the activity of the brain, they have been trying to understand the source of its noisy, apparently random, activity. In the past 20 years, "balanced network theory" has emerged to explain this apparent randomness through a balance of excitation and inhibition in recurrently coupled networks of neurons. A team of scientists has extended the balanced model to provide deep and testable predictions linking brain circuits to brain activity. Lead investigators at the University of Pittsburgh say the new model accurately explains experimental findings about the highly variable responses of neurons in the brains of living animals. On Oct. 31, their paper, "The spatial structure of correlated neuronal variability," was published online by the journal Nature Neuroscience. The new model provides a much richer understanding of how activity is coordinated between neurons in neural circuits. The model could be used in the future to discover neural "signatures" that predict brain activity associated with learning or disease, say the investigators. "Normally, brain activity appears highly random and variable most of the time, which looks like a weird way to compute," said Brent Doiron, associate professor of mathematics at Pitt, senior author on the paper, and a member of the University of Pittsburgh Brain Institute (UPBI). "To understand the mechanics of neural computation, you need to know how the dynamics of a neuronal network depends on the network's architecture, and this latest research brings us significantly closer to achieving this goal." Earlier versions of the balanced network theory captured how the timing and frequency of inputs--excitatory and inhibitory--shaped the emergence of variability in neural behavior, but these models used shortcuts that were biologically unrealistic, according to Doiron. "The original balanced model ignored the spatial dependence of wiring in the brain, but it has long been known that neuron pairs that are near one another have a higher likelihood of connecting than pairs that are separated by larger distances. Earlier models produced unrealistic behavior--either completely random activity that was unlike the brain or completely synchronized neural behavior, such as you would see in a deep seizure. You could produce nothing in between." In the context of this balance, neurons are in a constant state of tension. According to co-author Matthew Smith, assistant professor of ophthalmology at Pitt and a member of UPBI, "It's like balancing on one foot on your toes. If there are small overcorrections, the result is big fluctuations in neural firing, or communication." The new model accounts for temporal and spatial characteristics of neural networks and the correlations in the activity between neurons--whether firing in one neuron is correlated with firing in another. The model is such a substantial improvement that the scientists could use it to predict the behavior of living neurons examined in the area of the brain that processes the visual world. After developing the model, the scientists examined data from the living visual cortex and found that their model accurately predicted the behavior of neurons based on how far apart they were. The activity of nearby neuron pairs was strongly correlated. At an intermediate distance, pairs of neurons were anticorrelated (When one responded more, the other responded less.), and at greater distances still they were independent. "This model will help us to better understand how the brain computes information because it's a big step forward in describing how network structure determines network variability," said Doiron. "Any serious theory of brain computation must take into account the noise in the code. A shift in neuronal variability accompanies important cognitive functions, such as attention and learning, as well as being a signature of devastating pathologies like Parkinson's disease and epilepsy." While the scientists examined the visual cortex, they believe their model could be used to predict activity in other parts of the brain, such as areas that process auditory or olfactory cues, for example. And they believe that the model generalizes to the brains of all mammals. In fact, the team found that a neural signature predicted by their model appeared in the visual cortex of living mice studied by another team of investigators. "A hallmark of the computational approach that Doiron and Smith are taking is that its goal is to infer general principles of brain function that can be broadly applied to many scenarios. Remarkably, we still don't have things like the laws of gravity for understanding the brain, but this is an important step for providing good theories in neuroscience that will allow us to make sense of the explosion of new experimental data that can now be collected," said Nathan Urban, associate director of UPBI. ### In addition to Doiron and Smith, Jonathan Rubin, professor of mathematics at Pitt; Robert Rosenbaum, a former postdoctoral scholar at Pitt and now an assistant professor at the University of Notre Dame; and Adam Kohn from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine contributed to this work. The research was funded by National Science Foundation grants awarded as part of the federal BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) Initiative. Additional support was provided by the National Eye Institute, Research to Prevent Blindness, the Eye and Ear Foundation of Pittsburgh, and the Simons Foundation. With more than 150 faculty members, the University of Pittsburgh Brain Institute seeks to unlock the mysteries of normal and abnormal brain function and then translate discoveries into new approaches for overcoming brain disorders. The institute employs multiple levels of analysis, from molecular and cellular approaches to whole systems and behavioral analysis, and incorporates research across disciplines including neuroscience, bioengineering, computer science, and robotics. Henry Daniell, a professor in the departments of Biochemistry and Pathology in the University of Pennsylvania's School of Dental Medicine, has found great success in using genetic engineering to coax lettuce and tobacco plants to produce foreign proteins in their leaves, be they from a polio virus to make vaccines, a wormwood plant to synthesize malaria drugs, or the human clotting factor to make a hemophilia treatment. Yet over the years, he noticed that while his plant-based drug production platform could efficiently express bacterial genes as well as short human genes, it had trouble expressing viral genes and longer human genes. One explanation for this, Daniell and colleagues hypothesized, could have to do with differences among plants, animals, bacteria, and viruses in how they use the DNA code to make proteins. "Plant chloroplasts are bacteria-like, or prokaryotic, and humans are eukaryotic," says Daniell. "So that's the challenge: How can we make a chloroplast recognize a human gene and transform it like its own to make a protein?" Proteins are made up of building blocks called amino acids, which are themselves produced according to three-letter strings of DNA called codons. There are 64 codons but only 20 amino acids, because multiple codons encode the same amino acid. But it turns out that different organisms have different preferences for which codon they use to produce a given amino acid. It was these species-specific preferences that Daniell's team sought to exploit in a recent paper published in the journal Plant Physiology. The researchers analyzed the genomes of 133 plant species to see which codons were used most frequently to code for particular amino acids. Using their results from this analysis, they designed a software program that converts any given DNA sequence into the sequence that would be preferred by either lettuce or tobacco plants. This software is now freely available for other researchers to use. Next the team tested whether this process of "codon optimization" resulted in increased levels of protein expression, using a head-to-head comparison of the optimized gene--the output from the software--versus the native gene in two different proteins, one used in a hemophilia therapy and one used in a polio vaccine. Working with Novo Nordisk, the company that is funding Daniell's hemophilia research, the research team developed a technique involving a probe to the protein of interest to arrive at an exact quantity in the finished batches. The findings revealed the significant impact of codon optimization: The process led to expression levels of hemophilia clotting factor five to six times higher than the native protein, and to levels of the poliovirus protein roughly 26 times higher than the native sequence. "These two advances--improving the expression levels of protein and quantifying an exact dose--were key questions the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] has had about our work," Daniell says. "Now that we've addressed these issues, we're closer than ever to getting these therapies to the clinic." ### PITTSBURGH (October 25, 2016) ... Although cerebral aneurysms affect a substantial portion of the adult population, the risk of treatment including open brain surgery often outweighs the risks associated with rupture. With increasing numbers of unruptured aneurysms detected using noninvasive imaging techniques, there is an urgent need for a reliable method to distinguish aneurysms vulnerable to impending rupture from those that are presently robust and can be safely monitored. An international research team led by the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering recently received a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to improve risk assessment and treatment of this devastating disease. Principle investigator of the five-year, $2,950,622 grant, "Improving cerebral aneurysm risk assessment through understanding wall vulnerability and failure modes," is Anne M. Robertson, PhD, the William Kepler Whiteford Professor of Engineering at the Swanson School. The R01 grant is funded through the NIH National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. "The cells in our blood vessels have a remarkable capacity for rebuilding and maintaining the collagen fibers that give the artery walls their strength. Unfortunately, this natural process can be derailed by the abnormal fluid flow in brain aneurysms, leading to vulnerable walls and rupture," explained Dr. Robertson. "Understanding the factors that discriminate between robust aneurysm walls with well-organized collagen fibers, and fragile aneurysm walls with diverse changes to the collagen architecture, is essential for improving risk assessment and developing new treatments to prevent rupture." To support their work, Dr. Robertson and a multi-disciplinary team of world leaders in aneurysm research from Pitt, Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, George Mason University in Virginia, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Helsinki University Central Hospital and Kuopio University Hospital in Finland, will analyze brain tissue donated from patients with cerebral aneurysms. Using state of the art facilities for biomechanical analysis and bioimaging, the investigators will specifically look at how and why some patients are naturally able to maintain a healthy aneurysm wall while the walls in other patients weaken, leaving the vulnerable to rupture. They will use computational mechanics to explore the possible multiple mechanisms by which hemodynamics alters the wall and study the mechanisms of structural failure. "The diverse expertise in our team and our access to an unprecedented number of aneurysm tissue samples enables us to study this disease in an entirely new way," Dr. Robertson said. "We are also able to leverage computational and experimental tools developed during our prior NIH supported program." Co-investigators on the international team include: University of Pittsburgh: Spandan Maiti, PhD, Assistant Professor of Bioengineering; and Simon C. Watkins, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Cell Biology and Director of Pitt's Center for Biological Imaging Allegheny General Hospital: Khaled Aziz, MD, PhD, Department of Neurosurgery George Mason University: Juan Cebral, PhD, Professor of Bioengineering, Volgenau School of Engineering University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago: Fady Charbel, MD, Professor of Neurosurgery and Chief of Neurovascular Section; and Sepi Amin-Hanjani, MD, Professor of Neurosurgery Kuopio University Hospital (Finland): Juhana Frosen, MD, PhD, Department of Neurosurgery Helsinki University Central Hospital (Finland): Riikka Tulamo, MD, PhD, Department of Vascular Surgery "Because of the critical importance and delicate nature of the brain, surgical treatment of cerebral aneurysms is avoided unless absolutely necessary. That's why doctors and surgeons need a more effective way to determine whether a patient with a cerebral aneurysm is at risk for rupture," Dr. Robertson said. "We expect that by understanding the differences in the vulnerable and robust aneurysm wall, we will be able to improve risk assessment, identify biomarkers of wall fragility, and provide essential knowledge for developing pharmacological treatments to harness and augment the natural repair process of the aneurysm wall." ### Dozens of Welsh farmers awarded contracts worth up to 5,000 to lay hedges and make other environmental improvements have had those agreements snatched back by the Welsh government after a technical blunder. Up to 1.5m had been earmarked under the Glastir Small Grants Scheme to encourage farmers to embark on capital projects that would increase biodiversity and reduce carbon emissions. But on Wednesday (26 October) 112 of the contract offers were suddenly withdrawn, with the government admitting that they had been issued in error because of a technical issue. See also: Farmers offered Glastir grants of up to 5,000 in Wales One of the farmers involved, John Crimes, who discovered his offer had been withdrawn only when he logged on to Rural Payments Wales Online, said it was unacceptable. Mr Crimes runs a beef enterprise at Mydroilyn in Ceredigion and is also a director of Cara Wales. He said his offer was posted online on 20 October and withdrawn six days later. Eight of his clients were also caught out by the mistake. One of my clients was issued with a contract offer on October 4 for hedgelaying and installing an extra water trough and associated pipework and he had accepted that contract and gone as far as ordering the materials. He has now been told that the project doesnt meet the right criteria. Its completely unacceptable. If farmers make mistakes on their single payment forms, they are penalised financially. But when its the government making a mistake, and a major one at that, there is no recompense for the farmer. Farmers were urged to apply for funding under a number of themes, including water, carbon and landscape and pollinators. The first window of funding focused on carbon. Criteria not met A Welsh government spokesman said the offers had been withdrawn because the proposals from the farmers did not meet all the eligibility criteria under the carbon emissions reduction requirements. The government insisted that farmers were already aware from their selection outcome letter not to expect a contract, but the farmers said it contained only information about the criteria for eligibility. It said there were 112 contracts in total (94 Customer Reference Numbers) issued in error. These farmers can reapply for the upcoming water theme, where different scoring/objectives will be used, giving these farmers potentially a better chance of getting selected in the next window, added the spokesman. New Delhi : The nagging question of how Sri Lanka would repay the USD 1.5 billion loan it had taken from China to build the non-performing Hambantota harbour has now been resolved with Beijing agreeing to convert 80 per cent of the debt into equity. To make the port commercially viable, Colombo has given Beijing 15,000 acres around it to be developed as an economic center. The deal reduces the amount owed to China from USD 8 billion to USD 6.8 billion. But it is of concern to India, which sees Sri Lanka as its strategic backyard and China as its rival in the region. Sri Lanka has been trying to assuage Indias anxieties by saying the port wont be used for military purposes, and China, on its part, has invited Indian participation in hinterland development. But India continues to be concerned, given that the Sri Lankan Finance Minister admitted China agreed to the deal not because it believes the port can be run profi tably, but because it is of strategic value. Given that Hambantota sits on the main East-West shipping route in the Indian Ocean, and China is posing a threat to unfettered navigation in the South China Sea, New Delhi is apprehensive about Beijings intentions. With terror and separatism making Gwadar in Balochistan problematic, China needs a safe alternative port in the Indian Ocean, and Hambantota fits the bill admirably. A stateowned Chinese company already owns the Colombo ports South Terminal. Sri Lanka is acutely aware of Indias sensitivity about Chinas projects in the island, especially after alarm bells went off in New Delhi after a Chinese nuclear submarine docked in the South Terminal in 2014. To keep India in good humour, Colombo is giving it many development projects and investment opportunities. India understands the now-friendly Sri Lankas financial difficulties, but it cant but checkmate Colombo whenever Sino- Lankan deals threaten Indias strategic interests in the Indian Ocean region. Source : MSN Irish Farmers Association (IFA) president Joe Healy said a sudden and sustained depreciation of sterling, which is as a direct result of the British vote, has had a very negative impact on the price returned to producers here in Ireland. Mushroom contracts are negotiated in sterling and prices are forward agreed, generally for contract periods of up to 12 months, he said. Producers cannot renegotiate the price they are receiving in response to the sterling decline because the contracts are for a fixed time period. Mr Healy said direct support should be provided to affected producers through the Common Agricultural Policy market support measures. He said EU regulations establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products outlines the support measures that can be provided in the event of significant market disturbances. The sharp decline of sterling, arising from the UK vote, is a market disturbance which has occurred swiftly and unexpectedly, and has resulted in significant price falls, said Mr Healy. In addition, he said the IFA believes consideration should be given to the temporary easing of restrictive state aid rules, which are limiting the support that can be targeted at the most exposed sectors. IFA Mushroom Committee chairman Gerry Reilly said the European Commission must provide exceptional support for the mushroom sector, which has suffered an immediate and negative economic impact due to an external political event. Irish growers, employing 3,500 people, produce 70,000 tonnes of mushrooms worth 120m at farm gate. Irish mushroom growers export 80% of their production to British multiples through their producer group Commercial Mushroom Producers. For most Irish mushroom growers, 100% of their crop is exported to Britain, where they hold almost 60% of the multiple market. Malta is positioning itself as an alternative for companies willing to enter the EU market, and plans to use the EU Presidency, which passes to Malta for the first time in January 2017, to promote itself to UK-based international banks. A recent visit to the islands highly competitive, English-speaking (yes, we are not the only ones touting this advantage after Britain exits) and onshore EU jurisdiction allowing passporting and re-domiciliation of funds, with an efficient fiscal regime, a balmy Mediterranean climate and an ethical and professional workforce, left me with the impression that we will need to put our best foot forward to attract financial services from London as the Brexit talks get underway next year. Many of the worlds major banks who have their European headquarters in Britain are preparing to move some of their operations out of Britain in early 2017 due to the uncertainty over the countrys future relationship with the Europe. The UK financial sector employs more than 2 million people and makes up almost 12% of the economy. Banks in London depend on a European passport to serve clients across the 28-country bloc. Lenders worry that this right will end after Brexit. Most international banks now have project teams working out which operations they need to move to ensure they can continue serving customers, the date by which this must happen, and how best to do it, said Anthony Browne the chief executive of lobby group British Bankers Association in a recent interview . Their hands are quivering over the relocate button. Many smaller banks plan to start relocations before Christmas; bigger banks are expected to start in the first quarter of next year, he said. Malta, in a Trojan-horse-like-strategy, is focusing on maintaining the harmonious relationship it has with the UK. We see ourselves partnering with UK operators to provide solutions to help them sustain their business models; were not looking to try and take business away from the UK, said Kenneth Farrugia , chairman of Finance Malta, which promotes Maltas fund management industry overseas, as well as its insurance sector, trust and foundations and wealth management. Financial and insurance activities contributed 149bn or almost 98% of all foreign direct investment in Malta last year. It is obviously an important industry for Malta. From a regulatory and legal perspective it is difficult to differentiate Malta from other jurisdictions such as London, Paris, Frankfort, Rome or Dublin. But Malta has some key elements that have enabled it to attract business over recent years, not least of which is the special tax regime to attract highly qualified and skilled people to the country. The scheme enables them to avail of a flat 15% on their income, which is very attractive for people relocating from cities like London where the tax rate is much higher. This works out at about half the special Irish income tax rate under the Special Assignee Relief Programme, or Sarp, used to attract foreign nationals to Irelands financial services sector. Malta will be particularly overloaded with work during its EU presidency because of the start of the Brexit negotiations half way through its term. Key EU legislation that will be discussed next year includes the finalisation of the digital single market, an energy union to ensure continent-wide clean energy and a labour mobility package intended to tackle both unemployment and skills shortages. Its presidency will also coincide with the abolition for good of mobile roaming charges across the EU. However, the bottom line is that Malta has mostly always had good relations with the UK, thus placing the island in a good position to negotiate a favourable deal for itself during the EU presidency. In addition, through prime minister Joseph Muscat, Malta is the current Commonwealth chair for the coming years. John Whelan is a leading consultant on Irish trade. Collecting the Tipperary International Peace Prize for 2015, Mr Kerry said: People need to be really careful with downstream consequences. That one choice can have an impact on other aspects and whatever happens to the border, how that border access is managed. Its really critical that it be done very thoughtfully and very sensitively so that it does not have any impact. On collecting the Tipperary peace award, Mr Kerry said: Im really incredibly touched, moved, very, very grateful. Previous winners include Nobel peace prize winners Nelson Mandela and Malala Yousafzai, UN general secretary Ban Ki-moon, former president Mary McAleese and her husband Martin, and pop star and humanitarian activist Bob Geldof. Five groups involved in the anti-war movement in Ireland Galway Alliance Against War, the Irish Anti-War Movement, the Peace and Neutrality Alliance, Shannonwatch, and Veterans for Peace criticised the selection of Mr Kerry for a peace award. Mr Kerry said he was accepting the award on behalf of America, staff in the state department and White House who labour for peace every single day. And for all those desperate people for whom peace can so often be so elusive and so passionately yearned for, he said. They are ultimately our inspiration. Meanwhile, newlyweds Maria OLeary and Paul Shanahan from Tipperary got a surprise when they looked out of their hotel window yesterday morning and saw Mr Kerry waving up at them. The happy couple, who tied the knot in Bansha on Saturday and held their reception in Aherlow House Hotel outside Tipperary town, shared hotel space yesterday with the US politician and his substantial support and security contingent while Mr Kerry was in the area to receive the Tipperary International Peace Award. We had booked the venue about 18 months ago, said Maria, from Ballyglass near Tipperary, yesterday. The staff have been absolutely fantastic here because having the peace prize ceremony and all that security must have been a lot of work for them too. A huge Irish and American security operation surrounds yesterdays visit of John Kerry to the Glen of Aherlow. Her husband Paul, a garda based in Cahir, described the scenario as incredible. There was security everywhere when we got up this morning we were on the balcony when he arrived. Maria said she got a special wave and a moment of applause from the US secretary of state. It was a lovely gesture. Well be talking about it for years. VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 31, 2016) - Otis Gold Corp. ("Otis" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: OOO)(OTC PINK: OGLDF) is pleased to announce that it has intersected 30.5 meters (m) grading 5.37 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) in hole 16 OKR-315 and 114.3m grading 1.00 g/t Au in hole 16 OKR-327 at its Kilgore Gold Project drill program, Clark County, Idaho. The 2016 drill program, currently in its final stages of completion, has been expanded to 10,300 metres over 40 holes. The mineralization in drillhole 16 OKR-315 is hosted primarily in a Tertiary Sill and the Aspen Formation, the sedimentary unit underlying the existing Kilgore Gold Deposit and a primary focus of the 2016 drill program. In 2015, Otis' drilling identified significant gold mineralization in the pre-dominantly untested Aspen Formation sedimentary rocks. This mineralization is defined by intervals of significant thicknesses and grades that remain open-ended throughout much of the deposit (see Otis January 14, 2016 News Release). Otis' 2016 drilling is targeted to further drill test this Formation that underlies and serves as the basement to the Tertiary volcanic and hypabyssal rock package that currently hosts the majority of the known gold mineralization at Kilgore. Assay results for the nine drill holes announced in this release, along with those for the first six holes previously announced (see Otis September 26, 2016 News Release), continue to indicate the Aspen Formation has the potential to host significant additional gold mineralization. TABLE 1: DRILL RESULTS, KILGORE GOLD PROJECT, CLARK COUNTY, IDAHO Hole Number Hole Type TD (m) Azimuth/ Angle (degrees) From - To (m) Intercept (m) Au Grade (g/t) Primary Host Rock Unit(s) 16 OKR-315 RC 126.5 -90 96.0 - 126.5 30.5 5.37(1) Tertiary Sill and Aspen Formation 16 OKR-320 RC 283.5 -90 65.5 - 76.2 10.7 0.31 Lithic Tuff 266.7 - 275.8 9.1 0.57 Aspen Formation 16 OKC-322 Core 314.9 50/-70 79.2 - 86.9 7.6 0.54 Lithic Tuff and Tertiary Sill 100.6 - 111.3 10.7 0.52 165.5 - 180.7 15.2 0.65 207.3 - 219.5 12.2 0.92 16 OKR-324 RC 182.9 -90 93.0 - 158.5 65.5 0.69 Aspen Formation (Hole ended in 4.00 g/t Au @ 182.9m) 181.4 - 182.9 1.5 4.00 16 OKR-325 RC 219.5 -90 96.0 - 117.3 21.3 1.27 All in Aspen Formation 138.7 - 185.9 47.2 0.81 16 OKC-326 Core 331.6 -90 89.9 - 105.2 15.2 0.68 All in Aspen Formation 112.8 - 125.0 12.2 0.51 129.5 - 146.3 16.8 0.53 160.0 - 198.1 38.1 0.81 16 OKC-327 Core 307.2 50/-80 57.9 - 172.2 114.3 1.00 Lithic Tuff 185.0 - 211.8 26.8 0.67 Tertiary Sill 257.6 - 277.4 19.8 1.09 Tertiary Sill 16 OKR -328 RC 213.4 230/-73 96.0 - 109.7 13.7 0.80 Lithic Tuff 120.4 - 128.0 7.6 0.40 16 OKR-329 RC 213.4 230/-55 103.6 - 149.4 45.7 0.67 Lithic Tuff Notes: Includes 13.7 metres @ 8.71 g/t Au. This drill hole has been capped at 34.28 g/t Au (or 1.0 oz/ton Au avdp). True widths are estimated at between 80% and 100% of the drilled interval, based on their estimated dip, association with diking and the orientation of sedimentary bedding, and continuity of mineralization between drill holes. Highlights of the drill results to date and of importance to the future development of the Kilgore Gold Deposit (or the "Kilgore Deposit") include: 16 OKR-315, targeting the Aspen Formation, encountered open-ended mineralization at depth and indicates the need for additional drilling throughout the length of the deposit; The majority of intercepts reported in this release contain mineralization hosted in the Aspen Formation, the primary target of the 2016 drill program; The grade and thickness of drill intercepts at depth in the Aspen Formation continue to demonstrate excellent potential to expand the size and grade of the current Kilgore resource; Results of the 2015 and 2016 drilling support the premise that mineralization in the Aspen Formation sedimentary basement rocks is more extensive than indicated by previous drilling that mainly targeted the overlying volcanic package and dike swarm, which prior to this drill program had been the primary target of drilling efforts; The Tertiary intrusive sill, which directly overlies the Aspen Formation and also locally intrudes the upper part of it, is also a host to gold mineralization and may be a potential mineralizer to the deposit; Intercepts drilled in the Aspen Formation along the Main Road contain coarse-grained visible gold indicative of potential bonanza grades at depth; and Hole 16 OKC-327, which was oriented to the northeast, filled in a previously untested gap in the lithic tuff, which is host to the majority of the existing resource at Kilgore). Drill Program Background and Details of Drilling Results The ongoing 40-hole program was designed from an updated set of geological cross sections and long sections containing all historic Kilgore drilling results through 2015. Based on these sections, drill holes have been chosen to target mineralization at depth in the Aspen Formation and to infill and define the limits of the resource. Selected hole locations targeting the Aspen Formation at depth are focused along the Main Road, Segment 1 Road, North Road and "B" Road areas (the location of the Crab Claw drilling completed in 2015 and reported in early 2016 - see Otis January 14, 2016 News Release). Drill holes chosen to infill and define the limits of the resource are located in the southwestern part of the deposit where historic drilling is sparse. Craig Lindsay, Otis President and CEO states: "We are extremely encouraged by the assay results in hole 16 OKR-315. The grades are greater than that achieved at the Crab Claw in 2015, and continue to support the potential to increase the grade and size of the Kilgore Deposit at depth. Just as importantly, the majority of the other drill holes reported in this release are located in the target Aspen Formation beneath the existing deposit, and the majority of the drill holes report grades higher than the current resource grade of both the Indicated and Inferred mineralization contained in our current Kilgore NI 43-101 Resource Estimate." The drill holes reported in this news release, as well as assays and drill intercepts from the first six holes announced on September 26, 2016, are presented in a drill-hole location map available on the Otis Gold Corp. website here. Analysis and Otis Q/QC Program All assay work is being performed by ALS Chemex Labs, which has quality management system certification and technical capability accreditation. A 50-gram pulp of all samples is assayed for gold by Fire Assay/AA finish methods. Certified reference materials, duplicates, and blanks are inserted into the sample stream for quality control. Intercepts reported in Table 1 are calculated using a 0.25 g/t Au cutoff grade and may include a few internal waste intervals less than this cutoff. The RC drilling reported in this release is being conducted by O'Keefe Drilling, Inc., Butte, Montana, employing a Foremost 650 Reverse Circulation drill rig outfitted with a circulating wet splitter. The core drilling is being performed by Timberline Drilling of Hayden, Idaho employing two rigs, a DE-140 NQ core rig and a LF-90 HQ core rig. True widths are estimated at between 80% and 100% of the drilled interval, based on their estimated dip, association with diking and the orientation of sedimentary bedding, and continuity of mineralization between drill holes. The Qualified Person under National Instrument (NI 43101) Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects for this News Release is Paul D. Gray, P. Geo, who has reviewed and approved its technical content. About the Kilgore Gold Project The Kilgore Gold Project contains a current (dated September 12, 2012) NI 43-101 Indicated Resource of 520,000 ounces (oz) Au in 27.4 million tonnes at a grade of 0.59 g/t Au and an Inferred Resource of 300,000 oz Au in 20.2 million tonnes at a grade of 0.46 g/t Au (the "Deposit"). The Deposit is part of an extensive low-sulfidation quartz-adularia epithermal hot-spring system hosted in volcanic rocks of late Miocene age and basement Aspen Formation calcareous siltstone, shale, and sandstone of Late Cretaceous age. Gold mineralization is of the classic disseminated, bulk-tonnage type similar to that comprising the classic volcanic-hosted gold deposits at Round Mountain, Nevada and McDonald Meadows, Montana. The deposit features very attractive metallurgy with excellent gold recovery averaging greater than 80% at 1.5" crush size based on column leach test results (see Otis News Release dated June 5, 2012). About the Company Otis is a resource company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of precious metal deposits in Idaho, USA. Otis is currently developing its flagship property, the Kilgore Gold Project, located in Clark County, Idaho. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD Craig T. Lindsay, President and CEO Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. The forward-looking information contained in this press release is made as of the date hereof and Otis undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to sell any securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. VANCOUVER, Oct. 31, 2016 - AZARGA METALS CORP. ("Azarga Metals" or the "Company") (TSX-V:AZR) announces: new assay results from its Unkur Silver-Copper Project in the Zabaikalsky administrative region of eastern Russia; confirmation of a second (previously undiscovered) horizon of significant mineralization; a further expansion of its first phase drilling program to approximately 6,200 cumulative linear meters; identification of visible copper mineralization in two trenches; and the retention of SRK Consulting (Russia) Ltd. ("SRK") to prepare a maiden NI 43-101 Resource estimate. The Company's President and CEO Dorian (Dusty) Nicol said, "This announcement summarizes a great deal of progress happening quickly. It is particularly exciting to confirm a second horizon of significant mineralization at Unkur and that we will be doing extra drilling to try to intersect it again." NEW ASSAYS FROM DRILL-HOLES AM-017, AM-004, AM-013 AND AM-015 Assays from four new drill-holes (AM-017, AM-004, AM-013 and AM-015) have been received. All intersected significant silver and copper mineralization. AM-017 and AM-004 show higher grade intersections of significant mineralization, whereas AM-013 and AM-015 are lower grade but extend the mineralized strike length by approximately 700 meters to approximately 2.8 kilometers. Intersections of significant mineralization from the new drill-hole assays include: AM-017 10 meters at 134.2g/t silver and 1.63% copper (ie, 272.3g/t silver equivalent or 3.21% copper equivalent) from 192.5 meters to 202.5 meters, including a six meter sub-section at 194.5g/t silver and 2.42% copper (ie, 399.5g/t silver equivalent or 4.72% copper equivalent) from 192.5 meters to 198.5 meters. (ie, 272.3g/t silver equivalent or 3.21% copper equivalent) from 192.5 meters to 202.5 meters, (ie, 399.5g/t silver equivalent or 4.72% copper equivalent) from 192.5 meters to 198.5 meters. AM-004 11 meters at 58.0g/t silver and 0.87% copper (ie, 131.7g/t silver equivalent or 1.55% copper equivalent) from 323.5 meters to 334.5 meters. (ie, 131.7g/t silver equivalent or 1.55% copper equivalent) from 323.5 meters to 334.5 meters. AM-013 Six meters at 27.7g/t silver and 0.66% copper (ie, 83.6g/t silver equivalent or 0.99% copper equivalent) from 71.0 meters to 77.0 meters. (ie, 83.6g/t silver equivalent or 0.99% copper equivalent) from 71.0 meters to 77.0 meters. AM-015 10 meters at 4.6g/t silver and 0.29% copper (ie, 29.2g/t silver equivalent or 0.34% copper equivalent) from 135.0 meters to 145.0 meters. Note: Silver and copper equivalents assume 100% recoveries and a US$17.65/oz silver price and US$2.18/lb copper price AM-009 did not intersect mineralization of significance and is believed to have been stopped prior to intersecting the mineralized zone. Samples from AM-009 were not sent for assay. This hole will be re-drilled deeper to target mineralization as part of the ongoing program. A similar situation occurred previously with AM-005, which was re-drilled as AM-017, results of which are in this news release. CONFIRMATION OF A SECOND MINERALIZED ZONE The Company announced a second, deeper, intersection of significant mineralization in drill-hole AM-001 on 6 October 2016, noting that it suggested the potential for multiple distinct horizons of significant mineralization at Unkur. Such a feature was not observed in the shorter drill holes that had previously returned assays or from historical exploration records. Review and detailed logging of drill-core by Azarga Metals has now confirmed that the lower mineralized zone is stratigraphically distinct from the upper zone. As a result, a second distinct mineralized zone has been defined to be referred to as Unkur Lower (with the previously discovered zone to be referred to as Unkur Upper). Furthermore, there remains the prospect of discovering additional zones in the future. FURTHER EXPANSION OF FIRST PHASE EXPLORATION PROGRAM On 21 September 2016, Azarga Metals announced an expansion of its planned first phase drilling program at Unkur Silver-Copper Project by up to two thirds to approximately 5,000 cumulative linear meters due to positive exploration results. The Company now aims to further expand the first phase drilling program by adding an additional approximately 1,200 cumulative linear meters of drilling to 6,200 meters. The additional drilling has two principal objectives. One is to drill test targets north of Profile 6-6 (see Map 1 below) where an ongoing ground magnetic survey disclosed geophysical anomalies. Silver-copper mineralization appears to be getting thicker and higher grade in this direction, which may be associated with a change in direction of the mineralized structure. Another objective of the additional planned drilling is to attempt to provide additional intersections that target the Unkur Lower mineralized zone. Drill-hole AM-018 is currently being drilled to specifically target the up-dip portion of the Unkur Lower zone. Azarga Metals expects to fund the increased drilling with existing cash. VISIBLE MINERALIZATION EXPOSED IN TRENCHES Three trenches are currently being excavated with the objective of exposing near-surface portions of the Unkur Upper mineralized zone for sampling (see trench locations on Map 1 below). Two of these trenches, T-02 and T-03, have penetrated glacial cover to expose bedrock, where visible copper mineralization has been observed. These trenches are being excavated and will be sampled. SRK RETAINED TO PREPARE MAIDEN RESOURCE ESTIMATE DUE Q1 2017 The Company has retained SRK to prepare a maiden NI 43-101 Resource estimate for the Unkur Silver-Copper Project, based on the results of the first phase exploration program. It is anticipated that the results will be available during the first quarter of 2017. SRK's Project Manager has completed his site visit to Unkur in anticipation of preparation of the relevant model. SUMMARY OF EXPLORATION PROGRAM AND DRILLING TO DATE Azarga Metals has now completed 11 diamond core drill-holes (approximately 2,900 cumulative linear meters of a planned approximately 6,200 meters) and is in the process of excavating three trenches at its Unkur Silver-Copper Project as per the map and tables below. Table 1: Location details for Unkur phase one drilling program completed holes to date Hole ID East (UTM) North (UTM) RL Dip Azimuth (magnetic) Hole type EOH Recovery AM-001 56.84 118.57 929m 70 253 DD 401m 95% AM-003 56.84 118.57 931m 70 254 DD 96m 95% AM-004 56.84 118.57 931m 70 244 DD 383m 95% AM-005 56.84 118.57 930m 70 242 DD 160m 95% AM-007 56.83 118.58 928m 70 239 DD 80m 95% AM-008 56.83 118.58 1,013m 70 239 DD 601m 95% AM-009 56.82 118.58 976m 70 236 DD 225m 95% AM-011 56.82 118.59 960m 70 234 DD 179m 95% AM-013 56.82 118.59 1,000m 70 231 DD 100m 95% AM-015 56.82 118.60 1,044m 70 230 DD 196m 95% AM-017 56.83 118.78 913m 70 242 DD 278m 95% Analyses are pending for drill-hole AM-008. Drill-holes AM-002 and AM-018 are currently being drilled. Table 2: Unkur phase one drilling program assays reported to date (incl. this report) Hole ID Intersection From To Silver grade Copper grade AM-001 (IS 1) 40m 82.5m 122.5m 65.9g/t 0.74% - AM-001 sub-section 22m 82.5m 103.5m 111.9g/t 1.13% - AM-001 sub-section 7m 85.5m 92.5m 244.1g/t 1.95% AM-001 (IS 2) 18m 314.5m 322.5m 70.0g/t 0.81% - AM-001 sub-section 7m 320.5m 327.5m 137.7g/t 1.51% AM-001 (IS 3) 5m 339.5m 344.5m 49.2g/t 0.32% AM-003 16m 56.5m 72.5m 84.0g/t 0.79% - AM-003 sub-section 5m 59.5m 64.5m 200.4g/t 1.39% AM-004 11m 323.5m 334.5m 58.0g/t 0.87% AM-007 10m 49.0m 59.0m 20.2g/t 0.29% AM-011 13.7m 140.2m 153.9m 38.6g/t 0.5% - AM-011 sub-section 5.9m 148.0m 153.9m 100.7g/t 1.35% AM-013 6m 71.0m 77.0m 27.7g/t 0.66% AM-015 10m 135.0m 145.0m 4.6g/t 0.29% AM-017 10m 192.5m 202.5m 134.2g/t 1.63% - AM-017 sub-section 6m 192.5m 198.5m 194.5g/t 2.42% Notes: n = full reported intersection and n = sub-section of the relevant full reported intersection. Drill-holes AM-005 and AM-009 did not intersect mineralization of significance. Note: Drill intercepts are reported as drilled and may not be representative of true widths. Drill holes have been sited to attempt to intersect mineralization as close to perpendicular as possible, but there is not sufficient information about geometry of the mineralization at this time to estimate true widths. A Quality Assurance / Quality Control program is part of the sampling program at Unkur. This program includes chain of custody protocols as well as systematic submittals of standards, duplicates and blank samples into the flow of samples produced by the sampling including check assays of approximately 10% of the samples by another certified laboratory. Samples were analyzed at SGS Vostok Limited in Chita, Russia. Check assays will be analyzed at ALS Geochemistry in Chita, Russia. UNKUR SILVER-COPPER PROJECT Azarga Metals owns 60% of the Unkur Silver-Copper Project along with the right to acquire the remaining 40% in the future. Sediment-hosted copper and silver mineralization has been identified across the 5,390 hectare project license area, in outcrops, trenches and by historical diamond drilling. The prior exploration outlined a large area of high-grade shallow stratiform sediment hosted copper-silver 20 to 50 meters thick over an area four to six kilometers long. Further details concerning Unkur Silver-Copper Project are contained in a technical report filed by the Company as per its news release of 5 April 2016. Qualified Person The Company's President and Chief Executive Officer, Dorian L. (Dusty) Nicol, B.Sc. Geo, MA Geo, a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the exploration information disclosures contained in this Press Release. About Azarga Metals Corp. Azarga Metals is a mineral exploration and development company that owns 60% of the Unkur Silver-Copper Project in the Zabaikalsky province in eastern Russia. Source: Azarga Metals VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - October 31, 2016) - GoldQuest Mining Corp. (TSX VENTURE: GQC) (FRANKFURT: M1W) (BERLIN: M1W) ("GoldQuest" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the first batch of assay results from Target A, the first of 20 targets in the 2016/17 exploration program on the Company's Tireo Formation concessions in the Dominican Republic. The results are from the southern portion of the Company's land concession, 20 kilometres south from the Company's flagship Romero Project. Target A is the first of twenty exploration targets prioritized by GoldQuest in its current drilling campaign. The target has been tested with 6 diamond drill holes including a 3-hole-fan comprised of TIR-16 02, TIR-16-03, and TIR-16-04, displaying similar characteristics as our Romero discovery. Like all 20 targets, Target A was identified through mapping, sampling and most recently ground Induced Polarization (IP)/resistivity surveys. The target has encouraging surface geochemistry with rock sample results of up to 167 g/t gold (see release May 17th, 2016). This zone is over 1.5 kilometres long and up to 300 metres wide. All six holes have intersected massive and disseminated sulphide mineralization in the same dacitic and andesitic rocks as the Romero gold/copper deposits previously discovered by GoldQuest. The holes contained anomalous gold and copper -- hole TIR-16-03 intersected 9 metres grading 0.75% copper -- detailed in the assay intervals in Table 1 below. Future campaigns in the target area will vector toward potentially higher grade parts of the system. "Although early in our current exploration campaign, we are encouraged by the style of mineralization, especially the presence of copper sulphide minerals like chalcopyrite and bornite at Target A. Importantly, we are convinced that we have discovered a new epithermal system there," said Bill Fisher, Executive Chairman of GoldQuest. "This system is geophysically similar to Romero and we believe that testing the numerous targets in the area will give us the best chance of finding higher grade mineralization along the 50 kilometre belt. Epithermal systems like Romero and Target A often occur in clusters along plate boundaries, such as on the Company's Tireo Formation concessions. It is a rare opportunity to have the opportunity to test multiple targets within a large, unexplored land package." Based on airborne magnetics and mapping, Target A appears to be on the same trend as Precipitate Gold Corp.'s (TSX VENTURE: PRG) Ginger Ridge discovery (GR14-05), which is located approximately 2 kilometres south-east of hole TIR-16-06. Within the GoldQuest exploration concessions, there is an approximate 1.3 kilometre gap between TIR-16-06 and GR14-05. Future work in this exploration gap is currently being planned. The hole locations are shown on the map found here: Table 1. Drill hole assay intervals. Hole From To Interval Au* Cu Ag Zn m m m gpt % gpt % TIR-16-01 138 156.67 18.67 0.48 0.19 0.76 0.01 TIR-16-02 251.54 252.46 0.92 0.87 0.12 49.2 2.06 TIR-16-03 33.39 36.58 3.19 1.26 0.02 2.59 0.04 including 34.12 35.05 0.93 3.39 0.04 4 0.08 and 225.6 228.03 2.43 0.76 0.18 0.89 0 and 238.58 257.13 18.55 0.3 0.47 0.67 0 including 245 254 9 0.38 0.75 0.85 0 TIR-16-04 163.07 166.02 2.95 0.53 0.17 1.05 0 TIR-16-05 no significant results TIR-16-06 71.81 153 81.19 0.07 0.01 2.24 0.02 *Interval grades are calculated using uncapped assays. Gold values did not exceed 3.39 gpt. Intervals may not represent true widths. There insufficient drilling to determine the orientation of the mineralized bodies at this time. Table 2. Drill hole location, direction and final depth Hole_ID Easting Northing Elevation Azimuth Dip Final Depth TIR-16-01 265925.00 2097061.00 921.00 270 -70 233.17 TIR-16-02 265813.00 2097297.00 850.00 90 -60 345.95 TIR-16-03 265813.00 2097297.00 850.00 90 -85 298.70 TIR-16-04 265813.00 2097297.00 850.00 270 -80 288.04 TIR-16-05 265778.00 2097519.00 875.00 90 -80 344.12 TIR-16-06 266043.00 2096917.00 1017.00 270 -70 282.85 The Company aims to release the results of the remaining holes in batches by target area in periodic intervals over the coming months. Currently the Company is drilling hole TIR-16-07 at Target B which is approximately 1 kilometre east of Target A. The 2016 IP program, which is a significant contributor to the exploration target definition, is expected to be completed in November. The IP crew is currently completing detailed deep section work in the northern end of the survey area. Targets in this area will be drilled in late 2016 or early 2017. Technical Information As part of the Company's Quality Assurance and Quality Control procedures (QA/QC), most of the high grade intervals are reassayed and the Company is awaiting these check samples. In addition, systematic reassaying of intervals is in progress, to confirm compliance of blanks and duplicates checks. The Company also reviews results from Certified Standard Reference materials (CRSM or Standards), which are inserted at a rate of five per 100 samples. Within the results disclosed herein there were two samples that had results above the recommended tolerances for gold and another for copper which was below the recommended tolerance. The portions of the batches with the CRSM outside of tolerances will be re-examined with the laboratory. In GoldQuest's drill programs, composite intervals were chosen using a combination of geological criteria and mineralization, averaging around two metres core length. The drill core is cut in half with one half of the core sample shipped to ACME Labs by GoldQuest technicians. The remaining half of the core is kept at the Company core shack for future assay verification, or any other further investigation. Assays within intervals below the 0.005 g/t detection limit for Au were given a zero value. All drill samples were prepared and screened by ACME Labs (Vancouver); metallic fire assay and multielement ICPMS were assayed by ACME Analytical Laboratories (Vancouver). Gold values are determined by standard fire assay with an AA finish, or, if over 10.0 g/t Au, were reassayed and completed with a gravimetric finish. QA/QC included the insertion and continual monitoring of numerous standards, blanks and duplicates into the sample stream, at random intervals within each batch. The comprehensive GoldQuest Quality Assurance and Quality Control protocols can be viewed on GoldQuest's website at: http://www.goldquestcorp.com/index.php/corporate/corporategovernance. The information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Jeremy Niemi, P. Geo., Vice President, Exploration of GoldQuest and a Qualified Person for the technical information in this press release under NI 43101 standards. About GoldQuest GoldQuest Mining Corp. (TSX VENTURE: GQC) is a Canadian based exploration and development company focused on gold and copper in the Dominican Republic. With a Board and Management Team that have previously developed a mine still operating in the Dominican Republic, the Company is focused on developing its 100% owned Romero Project, and further exploring its' Tireo Property. GoldQuest is traded on the TSXV under the symbol GQC and in Frankfurt/Berlin with symbol M1W, with 215,732,384 shares outstanding (249,317,392 on a fully diluted basis) as at the date of this release. Forwardlooking statements: Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are forwardlooking information that involves known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Forwardlooking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to the 2016 drill program, the results of the drill program and the interpretation of the results of the drill program, further drilling, the timing of drilling and assay results, mineral resource estimates, the merits of the Company's mineral properties, future drill programs and studies, and the Company's plans and exploration programs for its mineral properties, including the timing of such plans and programs. In certain cases, forwardlooking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "has proven", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "potential", "likelihood", "appears", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "at least", "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", "should", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forwardlooking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forwardlooking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others, risks related to uncertainties inherent in drill results and the estimation of mineral resources; commodity prices; changes in general economic conditions; market sentiment; currency exchange rates; the Company's ability to continue as a going concern; the Company's ability to raise funds through equity financings; risks inherent in mineral exploration; risks related to operations in foreign countries; future prices of metals; failure of equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labor disputes and other risks of the mining industry; delays in obtaining governmental approvals; government regulation of mining operations; environmental risks; title disputes or claims; limitations on insurance coverage and the timing and possible outcome of litigation. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could affect the Company and may cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forwardlooking 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 forwardlooking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, do not place undue reliance on forwardlooking statements. All statements are made as of the date of this news release and the Company is under no obligation to update or alter any forwardlooking statements except as required under applicable securities laws. Forwardlooking statements are based on assumptions that the Company believes to be reasonable, including expectations regarding mineral exploration and development costs; expected trends in mineral prices and currency exchange rates; the accuracy of the Company's current mineral resource estimates; that the Company's activities will be in accordance with the Company's public statements and stated goals; that there will be no material adverse change affecting the Company or its properties; that all required approvals will be obtained and that there will be no significant disruptions affecting the Company or its 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 news release. TORONTO, ONTARIO and VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 31, 2016) - Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. ("Kirkland Lake Gold") (TSX:KLG) and Newmarket Gold Inc. ("Newmarket") (TSX:NMI)(OTCQX:NMKTF) announce that the Joint Management Information Circular and respective Form of Proxy and Letter of Transmittal have been mailed to shareholders of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket presenting the compelling opportunity the Combined Company provides to create sustained, long-term value for both sets of shareholders. While these materials will be filed by each of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket under their respective profiles and be available for viewing on the SEDAR website (www.sedar.com) copies of the letters to Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket shareholders are included below. How To Vote Shareholders must vote their proxy before 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time) on November 23, 2016. Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders with questions or need help voting are encouraged to contact Kingsdale Shareholder Services at 1-877-659-1824 toll-free within North America, or 1-416-867-2272 (for collect calls outside North America), or e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Newmarket shareholders with questions or require assistance with voting, please contact Laurel Hill Advisory Group, toll free at 1-877-452-7184 (416-304-2011 collect) or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Letter to Kirkland Lake Shareholders Dear Fellow Kirkland Lake Gold Shareholder: On behalf of the board of directors, we are pleased to present a very attractive opportunity to shareholders of Kirkland Lake Gold, which we believe will provide our shareholders with significant benefits and potential opportunities not available to Kirkland Lake Gold on a stand alone basis. The Kirkland Lake Gold Board, with the advice of its independent third party financial advisors, unanimously recommends (with the exception of Eric Sprott who did not participate in the board meetings or vote with respect to the business combination) that you vote for the combination of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket Gold Inc. by way of the proposed plan of arrangement, as described in the joint management information circular. The combination brings together two world-class businesses to create an exciting new mid-tier gold company. Together, the new company (the "Combined Company"), called Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd., will be a high-quality gold producer with low-cost production and superior free cash flow that will benefit from the combined financial and technical capabilities to execute a progressive growth strategy. We believe that combining to create this new mid-tier entity will afford multiple opportunities to create sustained, long-term value for all Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders. Compelling Advantages for Shareholders of the New Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. The opportunity to combine the businesses of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket is a compelling one that the Board believes is far greater than the sum of the parts. With more diversified production, a superior growth profile, a strong balance sheet, improved market presence and proven management and operating teams, we believe the Combined Company is well positioned for a potential value re-rating. Shareholders should be aware of the benefits of the Combined Company: Creation of a new low-cost, diversified mid-tier gold producer. The business combination with Newmarket is anticipated to result in the creation of a larger, more diversified company with a portfolio of high-quality assets including 7 mines and 5 mills, all located in stable, mining friendly jurisdictions. Gold production from the Combined Company's operations is expected to surpass 500,000 ounces in 2016, underpinned by three top-tier, long-life producing mines: Kirkland's Macassa Mine and Taylor Mine located in Ontario, Canada and Newmarket's Fosterville Mine located in the state of Victoria, Australia. The increased and diversified production profile and the aggregated reserves of the Combined Company should provide shareholders with enhanced leverage to the gold price. Production profile anchored by three high-grade, low-cost operations. The Combined Company is expected to have a significant and growing gold production profile. The combined production in 2016 from the Macassa Mine, Taylor Mine and Fosterville Mine is expected to be over 330,000 ounces, with cash costs of under US$600/oz and AISC below US$800/oz. The diversified production base should reduce the impact of planned and unplanned outages for the Combined Company. Driving growth across two world class mining jurisdictions. The Combined Company is expected to be well positioned for sustainable growth through exploration potential in underexplored, well establish gold camps in Australia and Canada. The combination creates a second operating platform to further evaluate growth opportunities in another stable mining jurisdiction supported by a strengthened balance sheet. The expected cash flow generation of the Combined Company can support accelerated exploration and development or investments to increase production. Stronger financial position. The Combined Company will have a stronger financial position and greater cash resources than Kirkland Lake Gold alone. It will have a cash position of approximately $276 million and significant expected free cash flow generation in 2016 and beyond, which will provide the Combined Company with greater financial strength and flexibility. In addition, the Combined Company will have the ability to cross pollinate best practices to drive cost savings across its portfolio. Existing Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket shareholders will own approximately 57% and 43% of the Combined Company, respectively, on a fully-diluted in-the-money basis, with significant benefits to each that would not be available if each company remained as a standalone. Recommendation: The Kirkland Board unanimously recommends that shareholders vote "FOR" the Arrangement Resolution. What You Need to Do To combine Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket, Kirkland Lake Gold will require approval by 66 2/3 percent of the votes cast by its shareholders as well as the approval of a simple majority of disinterested shareholders. This means every vote will count no matter how many shares you own. You must vote your proxy before 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time) on November 23, 2016 for it to count. Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders that have questions or need help voting are encouraged to contact Kingsdale Shareholder Services at 1-877-659-1824 toll-free within North America, or 1-416-867-2272 (for collect calls outside North America), or e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . We hope you will join us as we embark on this new era of growth. Yours very truly, Anthony Makuch Kirkland Lake Gold Shareholder, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director Letter to Newmarket Shareholders Dear Fellow Newmarket Shareholders: You are invited to attend a special meeting (the "Newmarket Meeting") of the holders ("Newmarket Shareholders") of common shares ("Newmarket Shares") of Newmarket Gold Inc. ("Newmarket") to be held at Stikeman Elliott LLP, 5300 Commerce Court West, 199 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5L 1B9, at 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time) on November 25, 2016. At the Newmarket Meeting, you will be asked to consider a number of resolutions, as described below, that are required to be approved in connection with the proposed plan of arrangement (the "Arrangement") under the Canada Business Corporations Act involving Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. ("Kirkland"). The Arrangement Newmarket and Kirkland entered into an arrangement agreement dated September 29, 2016 (the "Arrangement Agreement"). Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement and the accompanying Arrangement, the businesses of Kirkland and Newmarket will be combined through the acquisition by Newmarket of all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Kirkland ("Kirkland Shares") on the basis of Newmarket issuing 2.1053 Newmarket Shares for each Kirkland Share (the "Exchange Ratio"). The Exchange Ratio implies consideration of C$5.28 per Newmarket Share based on the closing price of Kirkland Shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange on September 28, 2016, and represents a premium of 9.4% based on the closing price of the Newmarket Shares on September 28, 2016 and a premium of 22.9% based on the Newmarket Shares' 20-day volume weighted average price on the Toronto Stock Exchange on September 28, 2016. The implied equity value was equal to C$1.01 billion as of September 29, 2016, the date the Arrangement was announced. The full text of each of the resolutions approving: (i) the issuance of such number of Newmarket Shares as may be required to be issued pursuant to or in connection with the Arrangement (the "Share Issuance Resolution"); (ii) the amendment of the articles of Newmarket to change its name (the "Name Change Resolution"); (iii) the amendment of the articles of Newmarket to effect the Consolidation (the "Consolidation Resolution"); (iv) the increase in the size of the Newmarket Board to nine directors (the "Newmarket Board Resolution"); (v) the election of each the Newmarket Board nominees specified in the accompanying joint information circular (the "Board Nominees"); and (vi) the authorization of the Newmarket Board to determine the size of the Newmarket Board from time to time (the "Board Delegation Resolution" and together with the Share Issuance Resolution, the Name Change Resolution, the Consolidation Resolution, the Newmarket Board Resolution and the election of the Board Nominees, the "Newmarket Resolutions") is set out in Error! Reference source not found. to the accompanying joint information circular. Terms of the Arrangement As a result of the Arrangement, existing Newmarket Shareholders and existing shareholders of Kirkland ("Kirkland Shareholders") will own approximately 43% and 57% of the combined company, respectively, on a fully-diluted in-the-money basis. It is also expected that Newmarket will change its name to "Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd.", subject to regulatory approval. As part of the Arrangement, Newmarket anticipates completing a 0.475 for 1 share consolidation (the "Consolidation"). Accordingly, registered Newmarket Shareholders will receive a consolidation letter of transmittal explaining how they can receive new Newmarket Shares on a post-Consolidation basis. The Arrangement is currently anticipated to be completed on or about November 30, 2016. Upon completion of the Arrangement, Eric Sprott will serve as the Chairman of the board of directors of Newmarket (the "Newmarket Board"). The existing Newmarket executive team will resign at the closing of the Arrangement and the Kirkland executive team, led by Anthony Makuch as President and Chief Executive Officer, will be appointed as the officers of Newmarket. Darren Hall, currently Newmarket's Australian-based Chief Operating Officer will remain with Newmarket and will be appointed as President, Australian Operations. The Newmarket Board will be increased to nine directors and will be reconstituted to include two existing Newmarket directors and seven Kirkland director nominees. Eight of the Newmarket director nominees are expected to be independent. Benefits to Newmarket Shareholders This Arrangement is a compelling opportunity for Newmarket Shareholders to participate in the creation of a new growth-oriented, low-cost, diversified mid-tier gold producer with estimated annual production exceeding 500,000 ounces of gold with seven mines and five mills in two of the world's most stable and prolific mining jurisdictions, namely, Canada and Australia. The expected increase in market capitalization of the combined company, together with a robust, low cost production profile, district-scale property positions in established gold camps, and industry leading executive team and board of directors supports a strong potential for creating significant long-term value for shareholders as a consequence of the Arrangement. In addition, the combined company will boast a strong pipeline of high quality development and exploration projects and will have increased financial strength to better exploit these growth opportunities. I believe that the business combination with Kirkland brings with it an exciting future for Newmarket and our shareholders. For additional information with respect to these and other anticipated benefits of the Arrangement, see the section in the accompanying joint information circular entitled "The Arrangement - Reasons for the Recommendation of the Newmarket Board". Vote Requirements The Share Issuance Resolution, the Newmarket Board Resolution and the election of each of the Board Nominees must be approved by the affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast by Newmarket Shareholders, present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote at the Newmarket Meeting and each of the Name Change Resolution, the Consolidation Resolution and the Board Delegation Resolution must be approved by the affirmative vote of at least 662/3% of the votes cast by Newmarket Shareholders, present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote at the Newmarket Meeting. Should Newmarket Shareholders fail to approve the Share Issuance Resolution by the requisite majority, the Arrangement will not be completed. Approval of the Name Change Resolution, the Consolidation Resolution, the Newmarket Board Resolution and the election of each of the Board Nominees by the Newmarket Shareholders is a condition precedent to completion of the Arrangement in favour of Kirkland. Should Newmarket Shareholders fail to approve these resolutions by the requisite majority, the Arrangement will not be completed, unless such condition precedent is waived by Kirkland. Completion of the Arrangement is also subject to, among other things, the approval of the Arrangement by Kirkland Shareholders, the approval of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List), the approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange and the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals. Board Recommendations After consulting with Newmarket management and with its financial and legal advisors, and after considering, among other things, the opinion of GMP Securities L.P., dated September 28, 2016, to the effect that, as of such date, and subject to the assumptions, limitations and qualifications set out in such opinion, that the consideration to be paid by Newmarket to Kirkland Shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement is fair, from a financial point of view, to Newmarket, the Newmarket Board has unanimously concluded that the Arrangement is in the best interests of Newmarket and unanimously recommends that Newmarket Shareholders vote FOR the Newmarket Resolutions. See the sections in the accompanying joint information circular entitled "The Arrangement - Recommendation of the Newmarket Board", "The Arrangement - Reasons for the Recommendation of the Newmarket Board", "The Arrangement - Newmarket Fairness Opinion" and Appendix H. Vote your Newmarket Shares Today! Your vote is very important regardless of the number of Newmarket Shares that you own. If you are a registered Newmarket Shareholder, you are encouraged to complete the enclosed form of proxy and submit it to our transfer agent and registrar, TSX Trust Company, as soon as possible but no later than 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time) on November 23, 2016 or 48 hours (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays) prior to the time of any adjournment or postponement of the Newmarket Meeting. If you hold Newmarket Shares through a broker, bank, trust company, investment dealer or other financial institution, you should follow the instructions provided by your intermediary to ensure your vote is counted at the Newmarket Meeting. The accompanying joint information circular contains a detailed description of the Arrangement, as well as detailed information regarding Newmarket and Kirkland as well as certain pro forma financial and other information regarding the combined company after giving effect to the Arrangement. It also includes certain risk factors relating to completion of the Arrangement. Please give this material your careful consideration and, if you require assistance, consult your financial, tax or other professional advisors. Shareholder Questions If you have any questions or require assistance with voting your Newmarket Shares, please contact our proxy solicitation agent, Laurel Hill Advisory Group, toll free at 1-877-452-7184 (416-304-2011 collect) or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . On behalf of the Newmarket Board, I would like to express our gratitude for the support our shareholders have demonstrated with respect to our decision to take the proposed Arrangement forward. We believe that this is a transformational opportunity for both Newmarket and Kirkland, which will generate new opportunities to create significant shareholder value and unlock accelerated growth in Newmarket's operations. We look forward to seeing you at the Newmarket Meeting. Yours very truly, Douglas Forster, Director, President and Chief Executive Officer Newmarket Gold Inc. About Kirkland Lake Gold Kirkland Lake Gold is a Canadian focused, intermediate gold producer with assets in the historic Kirkland Lake gold camp, and east of the Timmins gold camp along the Porcupine-Destor Fault Zone, both in northeastern Ontario. The Company is currently targeting annual gold production of between 270,000 to 290,000 ounces from its cornerstone asset, the Macassa Mine Complex and the Holt Mine Complex which includes the Holt, Holloway and Taylor mines. The Company is committed to building a sustainable mining company that is recognized as a safe and responsible gold producer with quality assets in safe mining jurisdictions. About Newmarket Newmarket is a Canadian listed gold producer with three 100% owned underground operating mines in Australia. The flagship operation, Fosterville Gold Mine, and the Stawell Gold Mine are located in the state of Victoria, and the Cosmo Gold Mine is located in the Northern Territory. In addition, Newmarket has a pipeline of growth projects within Australia, including The Maud Creek Gold Project in the Northern Territory and the Big Hill Gold Project in the state of Victoria. The Company is based on a strong foundation of quality gold production from its three Australian mines, producing over 220,000 ounces of gold annually. Newmarket is dedicated to the development of its resources, targeted exploration, and prudent cost management practices, while continuing to generate free cash flow and maintaining a large resource base with reserve upside. Newmarket strives to enhance shareholder value through a disciplined approach to growth, focused on organic exploration success on near mine targets and accretive acquisition opportunities in stable mining jurisdictions. The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither reviewed nor accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information This press release contains statements which constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket with respect to future business activities and operating performance. Forward-looking information is often identified by the words "may", "would", "could", "should", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" or similar expressions and include information regarding: (i) expectations regarding whether the proposed transaction will be consummated, including whether conditions to the consummation of the transaction will be satisfied, or the timing for completing the transaction, (ii) expectations for the effects of the transaction or the ability of the combined company to successfully achieve business objectives, including integrating the companies or the effects of unexpected costs, liabilities or delays, (iii) the potential benefits and synergies of the transaction and (iv) expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical facts but instead reflect Kirkland Lake Gold's and Newmarket's respective management's expectations, estimates or projections concerning future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Although Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, such information involves risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance should not be placed on such information, as unknown or unpredictable factors could have material adverse effects on future results, performance or achievements of the combined company. Among the key factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information are the following: the ability to consummate the transaction; the ability to obtain requisite regulatory and shareholder approvals and the satisfaction of other conditions to the consummation of the transaction on the proposed terms and schedule; the ability of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket to successfully integrate their respective operations and employees and realize synergies and cost savings at the times, and to the extent, anticipated; the potential impact on exploration activities; the potential impact of the announcement or consummation of the transaction on relationships, including with regulatory bodies, employees, suppliers, customers and competitors; the re-rating potential following the consummation of the transaction; changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets; changes in applicable laws; compliance with extensive government regulation; and the diversion of management time on the transaction. This forward-looking information may be affected by risks and uncertainties in the business of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket and market conditions. This information is qualified in its entirety by cautionary statements and risk factor disclosure contained in filings made by Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket with the Canadian securities regulators, including the Joint Management Information Circular and Kirkland Lake Gold's and Newmarket's respective annual information form, financial statements and related MD&A for the financial year ended December 31, 2015 and their interim financial reports and related MD&A for the period ended June 30, 2016 filed with the securities regulatory authorities in certain provinces of Canada and available at www.sedar.com. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Although Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket have attempted to identify important risks, uncertainties and factors which could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket do not intend, and do not assume any obligation, to update this forward-looking information except as otherwise required by applicable law. Kirkland Lake Gold Qualified Person and QA/QC All production information and other scientific and technical information in this news release with respect to Kirkland Lake Gold and its assets were prepared in accordance with the standards of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum and National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and were prepared, reviewed, verified and compiled by Kirkland Lake Gold's mining staff under the supervision of Keyvan Salehi, P.Eng., Kirkland Lake Gold's Vice President of Corporate Development & Technical Services. The exploration programs across the Company's land holdings were prepared, reviewed, verified and compiled by Kirkland Lake Gold's geological staff under the supervision of Mr. Doug Cater, P.Geo., the Company's Vice President of Exploration. All reserve and resource estimates for the Kirkland Lake Properties have been audited and verified, and the technical disclosure has been approved, by the Company's independent reserve and resource engineer, Glenn R. Clark, P. Eng., of Glenn R. Clark & Associates Limited. Mr. Clark is a 'qualified person' under National Instrument 43-101. The QP's for the mineral reserves and resources outlined under the PDFZ Properties are Doug Cater P.Geo, and Keyvan Salehi P.Eng., the VP Exploration and VP Corporate Development and Technical Services, and not considered independent under NI 43-101. Sample preparation, analytical techniques, laboratories used and quality assurance-quality control protocols used during the exploration drilling programs are done consistent with industry standards and independent certified assay labs. Newmarket Qualified Person and QA/QC All production information and other scientific and technical information in this news release with respect to Newmarket and its assets were prepared in accordance with the standards of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum and NI 43-101 and were prepared, reviewed, verified and compiled by Newmarket's geological and mining staff under the supervision of Simon Hitchman, FAusIMM (CP), MAIG, Exploration Manager, Newmarket Gold, is a "qualified person" as such term is defined in National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information and data included in this news release. Sample preparation, analytical techniques, laboratories used and quality assurance-quality control protocols used during the exploration drilling programs are done consistent with industry standards and independent certified assay labs. The information in this news release includes the following non-IFRS financial measures: all-in sustaining costs per ounce of gold sold ("AISC"), cash costs per ounce of gold sold, and free cash flow. These financial measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers, even as compared to other issuers who may also be applying the World Gold Council ("WGC") guidelines, which can be found at http://www.gold.org. Management of Kirkland Lake Gold and Newmarket believe that the use of these non-IFRS measures will assist analysts, investors and other stakeholders of the companies in understanding the costs associated with producing gold, understanding the economics of gold mining, assessing the companies' operating performance, the combined company's ability to generate free cash flow from current operations and to generate free cash flow on an overall company basis, and for planning and forecasting of future periods. However, AISC does have limitations as an analytical tool as it may be influenced by the point in the life cycle of a specific mine and the level of additional exploration or expenditures a company has to make to fully develop its properties. Accordingly, these non-IFRS measures should not be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for, analysis of the companies; results as reported under IFRS. A reconciliation of certain the non-IFRS measures presented in this news release is contained in Kirkland Lake Gold's most recently filed annual MD&A, which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. South Korea and Cuba discussed ways to boost bilateral ties Monday, holding their first economic cooperation dialogue in 57 years. The meeting of the Korea-Cuba economic cooperation committee was held in Havana, involving some 150 business leaders from the two countries, according to the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), South Korea's largest business lobby that represents the country's top 600 companies. The meeting marked the first of its kind since the countries severed diplomatic ties in 1959, the FKI noted. "The Korea-Cuba economic cooperation meeting is especially meaningful in that it marks the first dialogue amid a continued diplomatic cessation between South Korea and Cuba," FKI Chairman Huh Chang-soo was quoted as saying in his opening speech marking the start of the bilateral talks. Huh was accompanied by many other business leaders interested in expanding economic ties with Cuba, such as the head of the state-run Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency and representatives from leading South Korean firms, including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor and POSCO. The one-day meeting partly sought to expand the countries' bilateral trade, which came to some US$57 million in 2015, accounting for less than 0.1 percent of South Korea's overall trade volume that year. Apparently indicating Havana's move to boost its trade relations with Seoul, Cuban participants in the bilateral talks were headed by an official from GECOMEX, the holding firm for Cuba's 21 state-run importers that together account for nearly one-third of Cuba's overall foreign purchases, according to FKI. FKI noted that Cuba may serve as a logistics hub for Northeast America following its normalization of ties with the United States. The country also possesses world-class biomedical technologies, along with vast amounts of natural resources. Cuba also boasts of a literacy rate of over 99 percent, making it a potential and attractive candidate as an overseas production base for many South Korean firms, it added. (Yonhap) (Adds TransCanada comment) By Nia Williams CALGARY, Alberta, Oct 31 (Reuters) - The Canadian government on Monday approved the C$1.3 billion ($968.78 million) expansion of a natural gas gathering pipeline in western Canada belonging to a wholly owned subsidiary of TransCanada Corp, with 36 conditions attached. The NOVA Gas Transmission Ltd (NGTL) expansion project will create up to 3,000 jobs during construction and involve building and operating new gas pipelines facilities, the Natural Resources Canada ministry said in a statement. TransCanada said the entire project is expected to be finished by the second quarter of 2018. Key conditions include offering jobs to individuals in the indigenous communities and developing a caribou habitat restoration plan. Dirk Lever, an analyst with AltaCorp Capital in Calgary, said the approval was "absolutely expected" as natural gas gathering pipelines attract far less scrutiny and controversy than major crude oil export pipelines. The NGTL System is one of the largest in North America and gathers natural gas from the fast-growing Montney and Duvernay shale plays in northern Alberta and northeastern British Columbia. The system gathers 75 per cent of the natural gas produced in western Canada, transporting approximately 11.3 billion cubic feet a day, according to TransCanada. The Canadian government is in the middle of reforming its regulatory process for major energy projects, and in January announced a set of interim principles to guide decisions on projects already under review, including the NGTL expansion. "The twin imperatives of economic prosperity and environmental protection guided us in our decision-making," Jim Carr, Canada's minister of natural resources, said, adding he was confident the project supported the principles of sustainable development. TransCanada's Keystone XL oil pipeline to the United States was rejected by the U.S. administration last year, while its Energy East crude pipeline to Canada's Atlantic coast is facing fierce opposition from environmentalists. Story continues TransCanada Chief Executive Officer Russ Girling said the NGTL expansion is an important part of its C$25-billion near-term capital program. Western Canadian natural gas tends to trade at a discount to U.S. benchmark prices because of the distance to East Coast markets and congestion on the current NGTL system. "That's where all the growth has been in the Montney and Duvernay, and that's why it needed to be expanded," AltaCorp's Lever said, adding that once completed the NGTL project should help support gas prices. "Eventually it will allow more gas that is produced in the field to find a home." ($1 = 1.3419 Canadian dollars) (Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Alistair Bell) LifeStyle The best LifeStyle shows are right here, from Australia and around the world. Catch up with the experts on home design and interiors, food and cooking, the property market, and get fresh ideas with the savviest of renovators. Whether you need inspiration for cooking up a storm, to refresh a tired room, or tips to sell your property, Foxtel LifeStyle will always something new for you to watch. Enjoy your favourite experts like Andrew Winter and Neale Whitaker, or Deb Hutton and Jamie Oliver live or On Demand. Get Foxtel Were excited to announce that metalbulletin.com is now part of fastmarkets.com. A new look and an improved experience means you can still stay ahead of this fast-moving metals market with price data, news and market intelligence right here on Fastmarkets. Discover more than 2000 prices, news and analysis in primary and secondary metals markets. We cover base metals, industrial minerals, ores and alloys, steel, scrap and steel raw materials. If you already have a Fastmarkets account, youll still have uninterrupted access to your markets by logging in with your current details. According to the International Aluminium Institute (IAI), China used an average of 12,875 kilowatt hours (kWh) per tonne of aluminium produced in 2015, against a global average of 13,403 kWh. It was the only region to fall below 13,000 kWh, which it has done for the last three years. Chinese smelters energy efficiency has risen as the country has replaced old smelting facilities with new plants. Rather than the efficiency improvements being a result of upgraded smelting technologies, it is the sheer size of the new facilities that affords Chinese producers such economies of scale as to bring energy usage per tonne of metal produced to world-beating lows. China is scaling up the pot lines and the pots. The smelters are significantly bigger, and its helping to lower energy consumption dramatically, Citi analyst David Wilson said. Dr Mark Dorreen, director of the Light Metals Research Centre at the University of Auckland, told Metal Bulletin that the efficiency gains made by China in recent years are mostly a result of bigger pots. And these advances are happening faster in China than anywhere else. Technology development is happening much faster in China, driven by the demand for new smelting capacity, than in the west and Middle East, Dorreen said. It took 25 years for western pot technology to go from 300 kilo-amperes (kA) to over 500kA, while in China they have gone from 300, 400, 500 and over 600 to now 640kA in only ten years. Although the Chinese plants are using a higher amperage in the pots, the physical size of the pots means that average energy consumption per tonne of metal produced is lower than in western smelters. When compared with western technology of similar amperages, the Chinese pots are physically even larger again, Doreen explained. This means that the current density [electric current per unit area] is actually lower. This is the main factor behind Chinas lower energy consumption per tonne of aluminium produced. Demand for new facilities drives tech improvements The speed of improvement in China is driven by demand for new facilities to produce more and more metal. These drivers are not present on other regions, where production growth has slowed far more than in China. In the west and in the Middle East they are not building many new smelters, so there isnt much demand for new tech, Dorreen said. But in China, there is still demand for new smelters. So big are the new Chinese smelters becoming that there are efficiency gains to be had not just in the pot rooms, but all over the facilities. Though the overwhelming majority of the power used in an aluminium smelter is used in the cells, the power used in the rest of the plants is not altogether insignificant and is providing another efficiency avenue for the Chinese facilities. And these efficiency gains are all being made despite little prompting from the government. China wants to make more metal. Were not seeing regulations as a significant factor, or we would have seen a larger impact on existing smelters, Dorreen said. We were expecting a significant ramp-up in environmental regulations and enforcement, but weve not seen a lot of that yet. It is coming, slowly, however there is a lot of improvement left to go. Dorreen added a caveat to Chinas impressive efficiency statistics, however. Numbers reported in China tend to be taken from very early in a new smelters lifetime, when it is operating at its optimal rate. Pot technology in China is capable of achieving very low energy consumption, however in practice the numbers claimed in most cases are not sustained over the entire lifetime of the pots, he said, but added that the disparity would not be enough to stop China being the most efficient producer. Efficiency improvements elsewhere Other producers in other regions are making similar strides in efficiency improvements, such as at Norsk Hydros Karmy pilot plant in Norway, which is targeting a similar efficiency to the most efficient new Chinese facilities, and Rusal, which recently launched the first RA-550 pot of a new generation running at over 550 kA at the Sayanogorsk aluminium smelter in Russia as part of a $28 million project. Hydro has ambitious energy consumption targets for its Karmy pilot plant, apparently without any revolutionary breakthroughs, Dorreen said. Other western pot technology developers such as Rusal, EGA and Rio Tinto are also on a similar pathway to lower energy consumption. The playing field is not so uneven as the numbers suggest. But China is leading the way, and is also attempting to export its technology around the world. New-build smelters will exclusively be large facilities, to take advantage of energy. And China is trying to become the supplier of efficient aluminium smelter infrastructure and technology to the rest of the world. It has even been willing to provide financing for the new facilities. Theyve been trying to do that for some time, and had success in India, Iran, Malaysia and Vietnam, Dorreen said. This success is often linked to Chinese financial backing for the new smelters, however it hasnt translated into newer western smelters picking up the Chinese technology yet. Western smelters may not have picked up Chinas technology, but they arent building many smelters in the west any more. 31.10.2016 LISTEN Solo hitmaker Article Wan has disclosed he and his management have no clue about Mzbel's JM Toaso Concert which is set to support the NDC government in the impending December 7 polls. The Mingle Music's dancehall artiste Article Wan found his photo as a supporting act on a flyer posted by Mzbel on her official instagram page for the said NDC event organized by Mzbel Music. Article Wan has informed all and sundry that although he respects every political party in Ghana, he as an artiste has not composed any song for the NDC government as posted by Mzbel. He added that he does not take interest in politics but focuses on doing music pleasant to the ears of all. He debunked the news on being on bill to perform at the JM Toaso concert which will take off on November 5th at Bukom Square as he shares a press statement on his social media platforms concerning the glitch. Read what he posted :https://www.instagram.com/p/BMMPTp5lqoC/ Read what Mzbel posted on her platform :https://www.instagram.com/p/BMLi-JyBr7I/ 31.10.2016 LISTEN Ghanaian music duo, Keche are celebrating a new phase in their career and has release some amazing photos as a reflection of this fresh start. After taking part in the United Nation Peace Festival in Liberia between 22nd to 25th October, 2016, The group has release a new set of pictures prior to the release of their new song. Keche, also known as The Skill Team have had quite an exhilarating career and have been consistent on the music scene in Ghana since their introduction to the industry in 2009. Releasing songs like Pressure, Sokorde, Aluguitugui, Slow Motion, Diabetes among others. Keche promises to release two banging songs before the year comes to and end. Theyre therefore urging Ghanaians to watch out for their new songs and videos in the coming days. 2016-10-31 082124 2016-10-31 082137 2016-10-31 082202 2016-10-31 082234 2016-10-31 082248 2016-10-31 082306 Mzvees successful Tip Toe concert amazingly sold out hands down at the Achimota Mall as the stars came out the night to bless the stage. Among all the top artistes for the night; Ghanas gentle, versatile and family oriented musician with the highest nomination at the years All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), Okyeame Kwame with energy came out to set the stage on fire with some killing performance as Mzvee joined him to perform the hit song dubbed Small Small. They humbly rocked and it was beautiful See video of his performance below. Enjoy and share. There was confusion in Delta State in Nigeria on Saturday as a wedding reception ended half-way. This followed a brides pronouncement that she was no longer interested in her few-hours-old marriage. The incident, which occurred at Udu Local Government Area of Delta State, created a serious scene in the area. Daily Post reports that the bride, who ran away from the reception venue, was given hot chase by the husband. The incident attracted a large crowd, as well as members of their families, in a frantic effort to settle the matter. At the popular Orhunwhorhun road, the husband was seen begging the bride to reconsider her decision. But it looked like the wife had already made her decision. Kinshasa (AFP) - At least 11 people were killed in DR Congo on Tuesday as clashes erupted during protests against President Joseph Kabila who is refusing to leave office as his mandate ends, officials said. Nine people died in Kinshasa during protests to demand that Kabila step down, a government spokesman said, while a protester and a policeman were killed in the second city Lubumbashi according the region's governor. "In Kinshasa there were nine dead, not a single one more," said Lambert Mende, the government's chief spokesman. The UN's mission in DR Congo, MONUSCO, had earlier said it was probing reliable reports that around 20 people had been killed in the country's capital during protests. Governor Jean-Claude Kazembe said that along with the two fatalities in Lubumbashi, three people had been hurt in clashes. Kabila appears determined to cling on to power, and tensions in DR Congo have been running high, with police massing in the cities and many people staying home to avoid violence. Sorry, we can't find the content you're looking for at this URL. How to choose among more than 80 college savings plans Finding the best way to save for college can be daunting. States offer 84 tax-advantaged 529 college savings plans and more are on the way. Not sure exactly what a 529 college savings plan does? You're not alone. Nearly 3 in 4 investors don't know what a 529 plan is, according to a recent survey by the investment firm Edward Jones. Sallie Mae, the largest private student lender, found that only 16 percent of parents used 529 plans or other college savings options for the 2015-16 academic year, down from 17 percent a year ago. The lack of awareness is unfortunate because the plans are chock full of tax benefits. Investment earnings in a 529 plan are not subject to federal capital gains tax and generally not taxed by state governments when used for the qualified education expenses, such as tuition, fees, books, as well as room and board, of the designated beneficiary. Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia sweeten the deal by giving residents a tax break if they invest in their state's 529 plan. Five states Arizona, Kansas, Missouri, Montana and Pennsylvania offer a state income tax deduction to residents for any 529 plan contributions. "Looking at your state's plan is a good starting point," said Brett Tushingham, a certified financial planner at Tushingham Wealth Strategies, who specializes in college planning. "But don't let the tail wag the dog, so to speak." Savingforcollege.com, a website that rates 529 plans, has a calculator to determine how much a plan's state tax deduction or credit is worth to you. State tax breaks also can change. For example, North Carolina ended its state tax deduction for 529 contributions in 2014. And if you live in a state that doesn't have a state income tax, the plan's costs and investment options are more important considerations. Beyond the tax benefits, investors should know about the two types of 529 college savings plans: those sold directly by the states and those sold through financial advisors. (To make matters more confusing, there are also 529 prepaid plans that allow account holders to buy tomorrow's tuition at today's prices at in-state public colleges and certain private schools.) Story continues Direct-sold 529 plans generally have lower investment fees than advisor-sold ones . (See table below.) However, advisor-sold plans tend to offer more investment options than direct-sold plans. Morningstar recently released its ratings of 529 plans and no advisor-sold plan received the investment research firm's top "gold" rating. The three plans that grabbed the rating Nevada's Vanguard 529 College Savings Plan, the Utah Educational Savings Plan and the Virginia529 inVest mostly had low-cost index options on their investment menus. Two-thirds of assets invested in 529 plans are in age-based portfolios, which automatically increase their bond holdings to become more conservative as your child reaches college age. "It's important for investors to understand how their age-based portfolios work," said Leo Acheson, senior analyst at Morningstar and lead author of its annual 529 ratings. Some age-based portfolios gradually shift from stocks to bonds and cash little by little while others can reduce their equity exposure suddenly by more than 10 percentage points in a single day, "We like that more gradual approach because it exposes investors to less market-timing risk," Acheson said. In a low-interest-rate world, a hefty allocation to bonds and cash in age-based portfolios will do little to boost your college kitty as your child approaches high school graduation. "The age-based funds for several of the most popular 529 plans are half cash by the time the child is age 16 and almost all cash once the child is in college. Since the money will be spent over four years, you're going to see a minimal increase in value over those six years," said Andrew Tupler, CFP, a financial advisor at Commonwealth Financial Network in Bridgewater, New Jersey. Even with conservative investment approaches, assets in 529 plans continue to grow. Total plan assets rose to an estimated $242.7 billion as of June 30, reflecting a 3.4 percent increase from a year ago, according to financial research firm Strategic Insight. (See chart below.) Sadly, 529 plan assets may not be enough to blunt the rising cost of a college education. The median 529 plan account balance was $14,005, according to Strategic Insight. That would cover less than one year of in-state expenses at the average public, four-year college. Brian Boswell, vice president of research and development at Savingforcollege.com, said getting an early start on college savings is more important for investors than picking the very best plan. "They shouldn't get overwhelmed by the choices. They should just invest," he said. More From CNBC Al Hoceima (Morocco) (AFP) - Thousands of Moroccans on Sunday attended the funeral of a fishmonger whose gruesome death in a rubbish truck crusher has caused outrage across the North African country, sources said. Mouhcine Fikri, 31, was crushed to death on Friday in the truck in the northern city of Al-Hoceima as he reportedly tried to protest against a municipal worker seizing and destroying his wares. An image of his inert body -- head and arm sticking out from under the lorry's crushing mechanism -- went viral on social media, sparking calls for protests nationwide including in the capital Rabat. Footage online showed thousands of people following the yellow ambulance that carried Fikri's body through Al-Hoceima in the ethnically Berber Rif region on Sunday. Interior Minister Mohamed Hassad condemned the incident and vowed that an investigation would establish exactly what had happened within a matter of days. "No one had the right to treat him like this.... We cannot accept officials acting in haste, anger or in conditions that do not respect people's rights," he told AFP. The funeral procession was led by a dozen drivers in their cars -- including taxis -- and marchers waving Berber flags. The ambulance headed to the area of Imzouren some 20 kilometres (12 miles) southeast of the city, where Fikri was buried in the late afternoon. The circumstances of his death remained unclear. But a human rights activist told AFP that the authorities forced the fishmonger to destroy several boxes of swordfish. Catching swordfish using driftnets is illegal. "The goods were worth a lot of money," said Fassal Aoussar from the local branch of the Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH). "The salesman threw himself in after his fish and was crushed by the machine," he said. "The whole of the Rif is in shock and boiling over." 'Criminals, assassins, terrorists!' Long neglected under the father of the current king, the Rif was at the heart of Morocco's protest movement for change in 2011, dubbed the February 20 movement. Protests continued in Al-Hoceima late Sunday, an AFP reporter said, with protesters shouting: "Criminals, assassins, terrorists!" "The people of the Rif won't be humiliated!" Thousands of demonstrators -- including activists for Berber rights -- also gathered in Rabat, chanting "We are all Mouhcine!" while smaller protests were held in several other Rif towns and in the city of Marrakesh. Earlier, a demonstrator in Al-Hoceima demanded a proper investigation into the incident to "find those who did it". A protester carries the Berber flag as protesters shout slogans in Al Hoceima, Morocco on October 30, 2016, following the death of fishmonger Mouhcine Fikri, who was crushed to death on October 28 in a rubbish truck In a statement on Sunday, the AMDH condemned the state for "having trampled on the dignity of citizens since the ferocious repression of the February 20 movement and keeping the region in a state of tension". It warned of a "possible repeat" of the 2011 protests in the Rif, just a week before Morocco starts hosting international climate talks. King Mohammed VI has ordered a "thorough and exhaustive investigation" into Fikri's death and the "prosecution of whoever is found responsible", an interior ministry statement said. The king -- who was in Zanzibar on a tour of East Africa -- sent Interior Minister Mohammed Hassad to "present his condolences" to Fikri's family, it said. It was the self-immolation of a street vendor in Tunisia in late 2010 in protest at police harassment that sparked Tunisia's revolution and the Arab Spring uprisings across the rest of the region the next year. Morocco is due to host the COP22 climate talks in Marrakesh from November 7 to 18. Lagos (AFP) - Human Rights Watch on Monday accused Nigerian officials of sexually exploiting women and girls living in camps for victims of Boko Haram in the restive northeast. HRW said it had in July documented 43 cases of women and girls in seven internally displaced persons' (IDP) camps in Maiduguri, the epicentre of the seven-year Islamist insurgency, who had been abused by camp leaders, vigilante groups, policemen, and soldiers. "It is bad enough that these women and girls are not getting much-needed support for the horrific trauma they suffered at the hands of Boko Haram," said Mausi Segun, senior Nigeria researcher at HRW. "It is disgraceful and outrageous that people who should protect these women and girls are attacking and abusing them," he added. Government officials were not immediately available for comment on the allegations. Four of the victims told HRW they were drugged and raped, while 37 were coerced into sex through false marriage promises and material and financial assistance. "Many of those coerced into sex said they were abandoned if they became pregnant. They and their children have suffered discrimination, abuse, and stigmatisation from other camp residents," the global rights body said. HRW spoke to one 17-year-old girl who was raped and made pregnant by a policeman. "One day he demanded to have sex with me," she said. "I refused but he forced me. It happened just that one time, but soon I realised I was pregnant. "When I informed him about my condition, he threatened to shoot and kill me if I told anyone else. So I was too afraid to report him." HRW said irregular supplies of food, clothing, medicine, and other essentials in camps were making the women vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. "In some cases, men used their positions of authority and gifts of desperately needed food or other items to have sex with women," it said. Boko Haram has devastated northeast Nigeria in its quest to create an Islamist state, killing over 20,000 people and displacing 2.6 million from their homes. Since taking up arms against the Nigerian government in 2009, the jihadists have disrupted trade routes and farms. Now nearly 50,000 children are facing death by starvation if they don't get food and almost 250,000 more are severely malnourished in Borno state, according to UNICEF. Banjul (Gambia) (AFP) - Seven opposition Gambian parties closed ranks and chose a sole candidate to contest against long-serving incumbent Yahya Jammeh in presidential polls in December. The candidate, Adama Barrow, was elected through primaries in a convention attended by 490 delegates. The 51-year-old from the United Democratic Party, the country's biggest opposition movement, got 308 of the 487 votes cast. "We have put our differences aside for the interest of this country. Gambians are tired of 22 years of Yahya Jammeh's misrule and will end it come December 1st when we go to the polls. We all have to put our hands together to save this country from destruction," he said. This is the biggest opposition alliance in the history of The Gambia, a former British colony. Jammeh, 51, came to power in a 1994 coup, and has ruled The Gambia with an iron fist since. His regime is also regularly accused by rights groups of arranging the forcible disappearance of opponents. Before the nation's last presidential vote in 2011, the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said Jammeh's control of the media and intimidation of voters meant the election could not be free and fair. The strongman took 73 percent of the vote. The Gambia's newly appointed Independent Electoral Commission has assured political parties the upcoming vote will not be rigged, despite fears that an opposition crackdown is already underway. Bangui (Central African Republic) (AFP) - France on Monday formally ended a peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic, hailing it a success despite sporadic outbreaks of violence in its deeply troubled former colony. The move came just hours after about 10 people were killed in clashes between armed groups Sunday in the restive Muslim PK5 neighbourhood of the capital Bangui, according to local sources. The toll had yet to be confirmed by the 10,000-strong UN force MINUSCA, which will be alone after France's departure in facing the militia groups terrorising civilians. Thousands of people have been killed and 4.5 million forced from their homes since the conflict erupted in 2013. "The page has been turned," French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said at a ceremony in Bangui attended by local officials and foreign diplomats, signalling the official end of the mission called Operation Sangaris. Sangaris, launched in December 2013 to buttress 12,000 UN troops sent to stabilise the country, had some 2,500 troops at its peak. "This does not mean the end of military relations between France and the Central African Republic," Le Drian said earlier in a speech to the Central African parliament. "The French army will indeed be less visible but it will be present, active and vigilant. We're proud of Operation Sangaris, so it's out of the question to allow the gains to be put at risk," Le Drian told MPs fearful of renewed violence. Residents were continuing to flee the area around PK5 on Monday, fearing further bloodshed. A helicopter from the international force circled over the city from dawn, an AFP correspondent said. The 10,000-strong UN force MINUSCA will be alone after France's departure in facing the militia groups terrorising civilians Renewed killings have shaken the country of 4.5 million people, spearheaded by rival Muslim and Christian militia groups. Many Central Africans are worried to see the French troops go. Le Drian on Monday held talks with the CAR's President Faustin-Archange Touadera, elected early this year once relative calm was restored, and met officials in MINUSCA. He vowed that a "tactical reserve force of 350 soldiers" would remain. They will be backed up by drones. 'Pull-out far too early' Earlier this month Le Drian told the French parliament that the Sangaris mission, backed by a UN mandate, had been "a success" which stopped mass killings and paved the way for presidential and legislative elections. But prominent CAR politician and former presidential candidate Anicet Georges Dologuele challenged Le Drian's optimism, stating that "Sangaris is pulling out far too early." "Our security forces are not ready to take over," Dologuele said. "The UN forces are more and more overwhelmed." "It's always too early," Le Drian countered. "These responsibilities are above all your own." A UN's MINUSCA soldier stands guard at the newly formed camp for internally displaced people in Kaga Bandoro, on October 19, 2016 Two days before Le Drian's arrival, 25 people were killed in clashes in the centre of CAR, including six police officers. The government denounced the violence as a "Machiavellian plot designed by the enemies of peace". UN vice secretary general Jan Eliasson is also expected in Bangui from Tuesday for a two-day visit, MINUSCA said. One of the world's poorest countries, CAR has scarcely emerged from the chaos of civil war which erupted in 2013 following the overthrow of former president Francois Bozize, a Christian, by Muslim rebels from the Seleka coalition who installed their own leader. Armed groups have flourished over the years given the weakness of the state. Among the main culprits are factions from the mostly Muslim former Seleka rebel force, and the Christian "anti-Balaka" militias, a reference to the machetes used by the rebels. There are also vigilante groups made up of nomadic, predominantly Muslim Fulani herders, as well as others specialising in highway robbery. Cairo (AFP) - Egypt on Monday marked with a church service a year since jihadists bombed a Russian airliner carrying holidaymakers from a Red Sea resort, an attack that crippled the Arab country's economy. The Islamic State group claimed it brought the plane down on October 31, 2015, saying it had smuggled explosives into the aircraft before its departure from the resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. All 224 people on board were killed when the bomb went off minutes after the Metrojet A-321 had taken off for the Russian city of Saint Petersburg. At a service in a cathedral in the resort on Monday attended by Egyptian officials and Russia's ambassador, priests read out prayers next to an alter on which flowers had been placed. In Saint Petersburg, relatives of some of the 244 people killed attended ceremonies to mark the disaster. Mourners lit candles at a service at the northwestern city's Holy Trinity Izmailovsky Cathedral and held a minute of silence at 7:14 am (0414 GMT), the exact time when the plane disappeared from the radar. The central Saint Isaac's Cathedral also tolled its bells 224 times, while a memorial concert was set to be held in the city later in the day. Some 224 people were killed when a Metrojet Airbus plane flying from Sharm el-Sheikh to Saint Petersburg crashed in the Sinai desert on October 31, 2015 The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, led prayers for the victims in Moscow. Russia reacted to last year's disaster by cancelling all flights to Egypt, and Britain also cancelled flights to the resort town, badly affecting a tourism sector already battered by unrest following the country's 2011 revolution. On November 17, President Vladimir Putin said Russian investigators had found evidence of a bomb on board, and vowed to punish those responsible. In February, his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi acknowledged for the first time that "terrorism" caused the crash, although the government has not yet issued an official report on its cause. Sisi had previously dismissed as "propaganda" the IS claim that it downed the airliner. Russian tourists 'to return' On Sunday, Egypt's aviation minister and Russian ambassador attended a ceremony in Sharm el-Sheikh in memory of those killed in the disaster. The minister, Sherif Fathy, reiterated the Egyptian government's condolences to the relatives of victims, expressing "our feelings of sorrow and sadness over the lives we have lost". People march in the Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh on October 30, 2016 to mark the first anniversary of the 2015 Russian Metrojet plane crash Russian ambassador Serge Kirpichenko said the "sadness is ongoing and will never go away". The envoy said he was confident flights from Russia would soon resume. "We are certain the day and time are approaching, and quickly, for the return of Russian tourism to Egypt," said Kirpichenko. "We are working on this day and night." The ban on flights had severely impacted Egypt's struggling economy, denting its tourist revenues at a time it faces a shortage of dollars. Citizens of Russia and Britain make up about 40 percent of foreign tourists to Egypt. In February, Prime Minister Ismail Sharif told state television the North African country had already lost up to $1.3 billion since the disaster. Egypt is still battling the Islamist State group's Egypt branch in the Sinai Peninsula. Security services have not announced any arrests relating to the airliner bombing, or publicly disclosed how the bomb was brought on board the plane at Sharm el-Sheikh airport. In August, the military announced it killed the head of IS in Sinai Abu Doaa al-Ansari. The group's large-scale attacks against police and army checkpoints and barracks have become less regular in 2016, but they have kept up a campaign of roadside bombings in Sinai. By Philip Tengzu, GNA Wa, Oct. 30, GNA - Mr Kale Caesar, Upper West Regional Campaign Coordinator of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has called on the Tertiary Education Institutions Network (TEIN) of the party to intensify its campaign in the forth coming elections. He said the contribution of TEIN is necessary to help retain the Mahama-led NDC administration in power to continue with its unprecedented development efforts in the country. 'The NDC government has provided the people of the Upper West Region with an ultra-modern regional hospital which is near completion and has also provided several CHPS zones to provide the people with quality healthcare services even at the grassroots level. 'Upper West Region has benefited the government's 200 Day Senior High Schools project which to enable the graduates from Junior High Schools to have access to Secondary Education' He said. Mr Kale, who is also a Presidential Staffer and a former Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, said this at a swearing in ceremony of newly elected TEIN executives at the Wa Polytechnic. He said this year's elections would be keenly contested and the role of TEIN in ensuring that the NDC emerged victorious cannot be overemphasised. Mr Kale said the Upper West Regional wing of the NDC is working towards achieving its agenda 79 per cent for the presidential candidate and 11:11 for the parliamentary candidates in the region. 'We must ensure that the agenda 79 per cent for the presidential candidate, which means 79 per cent of the total valid votes cast for the President Mahama and the agenda 11:1, that is, NDC winning all the 11 parliamentary seats in the Upper West Region is achieved come December 7', he said. Mr Issahaku Karifa Salim, the past president of the Wa Polytechnic branch of TEIN, called on the newly sworn in leaders of the network to ensure that Wa Polytechnic becomes a strong hold of the NDC. 'Join forces together to ensure that every student in this school votes for President John Dramani Mahama and Dr Rashid Pelpuo as the Member of Parliament for the Wa Central Constituency. 'Those of you who will vote outside Wa Central should make it a point to vote for John Mahama as well as the NDC parliamentary candidate of your respective constituencies and also convince your colleagues to vote for them', Mr Issahaku said. He said there is the need for politicians and political actors to conduct their campaign with circumspection so as not to incite violence in the upcoming elections as this has the tendency of ruining the peace that Ghana is currently enjoying. Mr Yahaya Abdul-Walliu was sworn in as the President of the Wa Polytechnic branch of TEIN with Dramani Bashiru Amantana as Vice. Other executives are Alhassan Abdul-Razack, communications officer; Alhassan Hakim, deputy communication officer; Issaka Mugtari, deputy secretary; Kpaalaa Richard, organizer; Musah Seidu, first deputy organizer; Abinye Abdul-Aziz, second deputy organizer; and Yussif Angpere Saani as treasurer. GNA Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has expressed concern about the unauthorized pasting of posters and the defacing of public facilities around the city. He called on offenders to desist from such acts as their activities were marring the beauty of the city. He said a case in point was the pasting of publicity materials such as political party paraphernalia and church posters at public places and facilities, especially on bridges and flyovers. Mr Sam Ayeh-Datey, Accra Metropolitan Coordinating Director of the AMA, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said, it is against the AMA's Premises Maintenance By-Law of 1995 Section 76 of the Local Government Act, 1993 (Act 465) to deface any wall or paste anything on a public facilities. 'It will be appreciated if all publicity materials which have not been permitted by the Assembly are removed with immediate effect', he said. He said the AMA would be forced to remove all unauthorized posters and surcharge offenders found culpable for the cost of removal. Mr Ayeh-Datey said it was time churches and political parties take up the responsibility of ensuring a clean environment and urged them to desist from practices which would not inure to the beautification project of Accra. GNA By Albert Futukpor, GNA Tamale, Oct. 30, GNA - Four armed robbers on Saturday evening (October 29,) around 19:30GMT attacked a mobile money dealer at his shop at the Kalpohin Estate, a suburb of Tamale, and took away an amount of GH26,000.00. The robbers, whiles bolting away with the booty, shot at three people including the mobile money dealer, whose name was given as Abdallah, believed to be in his late 40s. Two of the robbers were waiting on two stand-by motorbikes whiles the other two, wielding AK47 rifles, entered the shop and demanded access to a bag containing the money, which was given to them. Whiles the armed robbers were about leaving the shop, they fired a bullet, which hit the stomach of the mobile money dealer. A customer (a boy around 20 years of age), who was coming to the shop, raised an alarm and the robbers also shot at the lower part of his chest. The armed robbers then started shooting indiscriminately and a barber, (whose name was given as Foster, believed to be in his early 30s) who rushed to attend to the customer, was also shot at the waist. The armed robbers jumped onto the two motorbikes that were on stand-by and sped off. A team of police officers from the Criminal Investigations Department of the Tamale District Police Command visited the crime scene to pick evidence of the incident. GNA later visited the victims at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, where they were responding to treatment. GNA Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - Over 119 individuals and institutions have petitioned the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights (AfCHPR) as at October 1st, 2016. The African Court at Arusha, Tanzania serves as the continental court established by African countries to ensure the protection of human rights in Africa and complements the functions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. The Court has finalized 32 applications and 87 are pending, Justice Sylvain OrA, AfCHPR President, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview, as the court begins its 43rd Ordinary Session from October 31 to November 18, 2016 at Arusha, the United Republic of Tanzania. The eleven member judges will also examine about 70 applications and four requests for advisory opinion. Justice Sylvain OrA said the African Court under Article 3 of the Protocol, has jurisdiction to deal with all cases and disputes submitted to it regarding the interpretation and application of the Charter, the Protocol and any other relevant human rights instrument ratified by the concerned States. He noted that under Article 4 of the Protocol, the Court may, at the request of a AU Member State, any AU organs, or any African organization recognized by the AU, provide an opinion on any legal matter relating to the Charter or any other relevant human rights instruments. Justice Ore said in February 2009, the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU requested the AU Commission, in consultation with the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and the AfCHPR, to assess the implications of extending the jurisdiction of the Court to try international crimes, such as genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. He said to implement this decision of the Assembly, the African Union Commission engaged a consultant to undertake a study on the implications of extending the jurisdiction of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights (yet to become operational), including considering whether unconstitutional change or prolongation of government, could be considered a new crime. By Francis Ameyibor, GNA 30.10.2016 LISTEN By Gideon Ahenkorah, GNA Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - Mr Bright E.K Demordzi, the NDC Member of Parliament for Bortianor Ngleshi Amanfro Constituency, has said when reelected, he would continue to introduce more development initiatives in the constituency. He said some of the projects provided in the constituency under his tenure has included the construction of CHPS compound at Langma, provision of solar powered lamps to constituents, health screenings for over 5,000 constituents, distribution of ICT tools to basic schools and the construction of an enhanced ICT center at Ngleshi Amanfro and Bortianor among other communities. Mr E. K Demordzi said the construction of a modern public toilet at Tsokomey beach and in all public basic schools, construction of a police station at New Bortianor, Construction of road networks and drainage systems, three polyclinics at Aplaku, Bortianor and Amanfro as well as the construction of basic schools and ICT self-development centers among others, were some of the initiatives to be undertaken when given the nod. "The NDC government continues to lift the image of the constituency and I cannot afford to abandon my people for anyone", he said. Mr Demordzi, who is also the Vice Chairman of the Food and Agriculture (cocoa affairs) committee in Parliament, also expressed confidence in the coming polls saying victory is "hands down". He lauded government for resourcing the constituency to undertake some of the developmental projects. The Bortianor Ngleshi Amanfro MP said his main focus was on security, employment, health and education as the constituency has a youthful population. 'A regulatory instrument would be enacted to sanction those who fail to participate in the [national] clean-up exercise to ensure a successful turnout", Mr E. K Demordzi said. He pledged his commitment to campaign for victory for the NDC saying the people of Ghana would reward President Mahama considering his 'life changing developmental projects". GNA By Gideon Ahenkorah, GNA Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - Mr E. K Demordzi, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Bortianor Ngleshie Amanfro Constituency stood alone on Saturday as other participants boycotted a scheduled parliamentary debate. The debate, organised by the Ga South Municipal Office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), was to educate the electorate on the policies of the five parliamentary candidates in the constituency. Explaining the non-participation of the four parliamentary candidates, Mr Ben Tetteh, the Ga South NCCE Municipal Director, later in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, said the Commission had prior to the event held an interparty dialogue meeting where all the candidates agreed to participate in the debate. The Commission, he said, had also officially sent invitation letters to them formally inviting them for the event and with the exception of the Convention People's Party, whose candidate said there was a manifesto launch on the same day and could not make it for that matter; the other parliamentary contestants agreed to participate'. He said the New Patriotic Party candidate called shortly before the event was to start to inform them that he could not attend the event. The candidates of the DPP and PPP, he said, failed to show up without any notice. The Director expressed disappointment on the turn of event saying the presence of the candidates would have made the event more exciting and a success. Mr Ben Tetteh, however, said the absence of the candidates did not totally ruin the event as the NDC candidate answered prudent questions that were of interest to the constituents. 'The moderators asked questions that touched on socio-economic and political issues which were of public relevance' he said. The questions centered on education, employment, agriculture, health and security. Mr Demordzi expressed unhappiness at the turn of events saying 'the constituents wanted to know who had an in-depth understanding of national issues and the problems facing them'. The NDC Member of Parliament said there is the need to break down the policies captured in the party's manifesto for his constituents to appreciate the goals of the party when given the mandate. The debate assembled many stakeholders, chiefs and more than five hundred constituents including party supporters. GNA By Deborah Apetorgbor, GNA Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - Parliamentary aspirants for the Krowor Constituency in the Greater Accra Region have engaged their electorate during a parliamentary debate to sell out their vision for the constituency. The debate, organised by the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) in collaboration with the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) and the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), was to highlight policy issues affecting marginalised groups in the constituency, and ensure that the political discourse was 'issue-based and less personality-driven'. Mrs Regina Oforiwaa Amanfo, Senior Programme Officer for CDD-Ghana, said the debate was intended to help the electorate to make informed choices at the upcoming polls. 'The debate seeks to provide opportunity for citizens, in particular Persons with Disability (PWDs), Persons Living with HIV and AIDS, youth and women to interact with prospective legislators on issues affecting them', she said adding that this was to ensure their inclusion and participation in the governance process. Mrs Amanfo said the debate was also to assist candidates to explain to the electorate, programmes and policies they will adopt for addressing issues recognised in the constituency. The programme also focused on issues relating to education and labour market mismatch, unemployment, agriculture (fishing), child marriage and child rights protection as well as issues pertaining to the utilisation of the District Assembly and MP's Common Funds, she said. The event brought together various candidates including Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, the National Democratic Congress; Fanny Amartey, Convention People's Party; and Hugo Huppenbauer, of the Progressive People's Party,. Elizabeth Afoley Quaye, candidate of the New Patriotic Party was however absent for unknown reasons. In the area of education, the CPP candidate assured electorates of free elementary education and the provision of libraries, while the PPP promised to ensure the effective implementation of the constitutional right to Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education. The NDC candidate, however, pledged support for any directive geared toward quality pre-school, secondary and tertiary education with particular attention to technical and vocational education in the constituency. For youth unemployment, candidates' responses generally cut across career orientation and job creation for both skilled and non-skilled youth, investments in master craftsmanship, creation of youth centres and encouraging entrepreneurship among the youth. Moderators for the programme included Reverend Fred Degbe, former Chairman of the National Peace Council, Lucille Hewlette Annan, Greater Accra Regional Chairperson of the NCCE and Dela Sky of City FM. The debate, which took place at Nungua in Accra, was attended by the Ghana Federation of the Disabled, Network of People living with HIV and some members of the constituency. The constituency debate for parliamentary candidates is being organised in 60 selected constituencies and it is being run concurrently in all ten regions across the country with support from the Open Society Initiative for West Africa and the Ghana Oil and Gas for Inclusive Growth. GNA 30.10.2016 LISTEN The presidential candidate of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) has threatened that governance under his watch will see the repeal of the Petroleum and Exploration Law. Addressing party supporters and sympathizers at the manifesto launch of the cockerel family at the Ghana Academy of Arts and Science in Accra on Saturday, Mr. Greestreet said his party will introduce a new law that will be more beneficial to Ghana than what it is currently earning from its oil and gas resource. The CPP leader believes that the adoption of Ghana Hybrid System for the exploration of the countrys oil and gas resource was a plot by officials of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the biggest opposition party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to steal the countrys oil revenue. Senior Kwasi Pratt Jnr. made an important statement about our resources. How is it possible that we have a National Development Planning Commission goes around the whole country seeking the views of Ghanaians and Ghanaians tell this very Commission that what they want is for us to earn more from our resources that God has bequeath on our great nation oil, gold, timber, gas, fertile lands, strong human base, access to water resources yet we continue to wallop in abject poverty bowing before forces. And so secretly ignoring this cardinal principle for the people of Ghana has requested NDC and NPP went to secretly pass this Petroleum Law in stealing and emphasizing a method called the Ghana Hybrid System which is a form of getting revenue from the oil sector through royalties and taxes. And you know how bad as a nation we are at collecting taxes and you know how good multinationals are, at escaping taxes. We will repeal that law. We will review that law. We will bring what is called the Production Sharing formula. That is where like a farmer who owes a piece of land and somebody comes to grow corn on that land, they share in the proceeds, he noted. According to him, between 2010 and 2015, Ghana under the hybrid system has earned US$3billion as revenue from its oil and gas sector but stressed that if the country had adopted the Production Sharing formula, the country could have earned US$10billion, thus, US$6billion more than what it has accrued over the stipulated period. Kirsten Bindemann in his economic analysis for Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (1999) explained Production Sharing Agreements as a type of contractual arrangement in the petroleum exploration and development where the State as the owner of mineral resources engages a foreign oil company as a contractor to provide technical and financial services for exploration and development operations. The State is traditionally represented by the government or one of its agencies such as the national oil company. The foreign oil company acquires an entitlement to a stipulated share of the oil produced as a reward for the risk taken and services rendered. The State, however, remains the owner of the petroleum produced subject only to the contractors entitlement to its share of production. The government or its national oil company usually has the option to participate in different aspects of the exploration and development process. In addition, Production Sharing Agreements frequently provide for the establishment of a joint committee where both parties are represented and which monitors the operations. Please go and sign the petition: https://www.change.org/p/ghana-fair-trade-oil-share-psa-campaign-ftos-gh-psa The Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast (UCC), has revealed that his university spent more than Gh500,000 on small chops at meetings organized last year. Prof. Ghartey Ampiah who disclosed this at an induction service last week, described the situation as unacceptable. If small chops and meals at even short meetings last year made us spend GH530,500, or spend GH4.6 million on fuel or GH68 million plus or stationary alone, I think we can do better, he said. He said the University can reduce cost and channel all these monies into research, which in the end will be beneficial to the university at large. He has vowed to revolutionize leadership by fighting what he calls the unnecessary wastage in the University system. He says his vision is to provide leadership that will improve the national and international visibility of the University of Cape Coast. This he says will be done by focusing on innovation in the delivery of teaching and research and the management of the university to secure wider impact on society. Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com This prosperous West African country is Africa's fastest growing economy in 2016, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The country's phenomenal growth rate of 8.5 percent greatly contrasts with the rest of sub-Saharan Africa which has only seen three percent growth. But not every Ivorian is reaping the rewards. While the economy powers ahead, many citizens have been left behind, with the World Bank estimating that nearly half of the population still lives in poverty. Despite the reality for many on the ground, the IMF predicts the country's GDP will increase by an average of 7.4 percent between 2017 and 2020. Investing in the Ivory Coast After a decade of absence, the African Development Bank returned in 2014, moving its headquarters from Tunisia back to Abidjan. "As soon as the bank came back and prior to that, the growth opportunities from peace and stability were tremendous," says African Development Bank Senior Vice President, Frannie Leautier. In recent years, the African Development Bank has contributed to one of the biggest private infrastructure projects in the country: the impressive Henry Konan Bedie (HKB) bridge. Bridging the gap The HKB bridge spans across the Ebrie Lagoon, connecting the wealthy residential side of Abidjan in the north to the city's business and industrial districts in the south. The bridge has greatly improved the quality of life in Abidjan, cutting 30 minutes off the average driver's total commute time. Building the expressway took three years and cost a mighty $250 million. The African Development Bank contributed $65 million toward its completion. "These are usually expensive projects. You need to bring in multiple players," says Leautier. Bringing power to the people Further key investments in the country can be seen in the rapidly advancing energy sector. In the past 20 years, independent electricity producer, Ciprel, has invested $560 million to meet the growing demand. "Power demand has grown by 10 percent each year for the last five years," says Ralph Olaye, Business Development Director of Ciprel's parent company, Eranove. Ivory Coast is blessed with both natural resources to produce hydropower and gas to produce thermo-power. According to Olaye, the country "serves a powerhouse for the region". Despite the country's extensive national grid, meaning more than 80 percent of residents live a few meters from the electricity line, only a small portion of Ivorians have access to power at home. "Currently the number of population that is connected to the grid is in the tune of 40 percent," says Olaye. This is owing to the fact that many Ivorians cannot afford to buy and install meters. The government is working on doing away with the initial cost of providing a meter through a program called "Electricite pour tous" (Electricity for All). "We expect growth to become more inclusive so that the population will benefit more than what is has," says the IMF's Ivory Coast Mission Chief, Dhaneshwar Ghura. Cape Town (AFP) - Friday prayers at the People's Mosque in Cape Town looks like any other around the Islamic world, except in this South African city the imam is openly gay and the teaching promotes homosexual rights. It is a stance that provokes outrage from many Muslims, but Muhsin Hendricks has built up a small, loyal congregation by helping worshippers try to reconcile their sexuality and their religion. "There is this love-hate relationship from the Muslim community," Hendricks told AFP. "Sometimes they feel that I should be thrown from the highest mountain, and sometimes they appreciate that there is one imam who is willing to work with people who they are unwilling to work with." Cape Town has an active gay scene, and is often described as the "gay capital" of Africa, with a district of gay-friendly restaurants, bars, guesthouses and clubs near the city centre. In 1996 Hendricks founded "The Inner Circle", a support group for Muslims living in Cape Town who felt rejected due to their sexual orientation, which led to him setting up the mosque five years ago. In contrast to the emotions that surround the explosive topic of Islam and homosexuality, the mosque offers a calm and open place for gay Muslims to worship together. "I got divorced at the age of 29 after being married (to a woman) for six years," Henrdicks, 48, said. Imam Muhsin Hendricks does his ablutions before the start of the Jumu'ah prayer at the Inner Circle Mosque, in Wynberg, on September 2, 2016, in Cape Town "That was the point where I just felt -- no more double life. I needed to be authentic with myself, and part of that process was to come out. "This is who I am and if that means I am going to be killed because of my authenticity, then that is how I choose to meet God." 'Homophobic messaging' Today the mosque, located at the Inner Circle offices, has about 25 regular worshippers, and even offers a marriage blessing to gay couples. South Africa's 1996 constitution was the first in the world to protect homosexuals' rights, and the country is the only one in Africa that allows same sex marriages. But many South Africans of all religious groups are less tolerant, and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people are often subject to discrimination and violence. There are about 300,000 Muslims in Cape Town and most mosque leaders in the city take a clear stand against homosexuality, even encouraging home imprisonment and "corrective treatment". "Homosexuality is unacceptable and the punishment will be the fire," Imam Pandy, leader of a mosque in Mowbray, a busy central district of Cape Town, told AFP. In 1996, Imam Muhsin Hendricks founded "The Inner Circle", a support group for Muslims living in Cape Town who felt rejected due to their sexual orientation "How can you be homosexual? It is forbidden. And it is your duty as an imam or as a Muslim to go and speak to them and say 'no, it cannot be'." The Inner Circle group has worked for 20 years to support gay Muslims, often struggling to survive against overwhelming opposition from orthodox Islamic leaders. "The messaging that the Muslim community gets about queer issues comes from a clergy that is completely homophobic," said Abdul Karriem Matthews, programme manager at the Inner Circle. 'Pioneers of change' For worshippers like Zaid Philander, a local art teacher, the mosque provides a welcome refuge, as well as access to counselling after he endured a harrowing "corrective" ritual conducted by a quack "doctor" in Cape Town. "There are a lot of lives being destroyed based on sexuality and religion, and that needs to change," he said. "Here they are the pioneers of this change, and this is a good place to start. "I choose to be in a place where I can have a healthy relationship with God, and the Inner Circle gives me the freedom to be the person I am." At one recent Friday prayers attended by AFP a female visitor from the Middle East gave a sermon to about 30 people citing passages from the Koran to promote an accepting version of Islam. She asked not to be identified or quoted for fear of hostile reprisals in her native country, where open worship by gay Muslims would be unimaginable. Hendricks, whose father was also an imam, travels worldwide to spread his message to other gay Muslims that the answer is to stay positive. "I want to... arrive at a point where we can include queer people," he said. "I don't see the Muslim community as the enemy." Technology giant Subah Infosolutions has been awarded the International Gateway Monitoring System (GWMS) contract by the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM) of Sierra Leone. After a rigorous assessment of competitive bidding process forwarded by 12 international participating companies, Subah Infosolutions the only West African based International Company won the contract. Subah Infosolutions has an undisputed record of excellently managing the monitoring of International Gateway Traffic Systems in both Ghana and Guinea (Conakry). The Regulator The Sierra Leone National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM) is mandated to regulate the telecommunications sector in Sierra Leone and to ensure the growth and sustainable development of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in Sierra Leone. The Commission in performing it's regulatory functions is mandated to undertake capital investments for the purpose of acquiring telecommunications equipment and services and other necessities to enable effective regulation of the telecommunications sector in line with international best practice for sustainable growth and development of the sector in that country. The procurement of telecommunications management and monitoring services in the sector is very important for the Commission in achieving the essential services and deliverables for which the commission was established as contained in its statutory functions. The Contract In line with these statutory mandates, the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM) requested for bids for purposes of engaging a service provider to provide International Gateway Monitoring Services and Subah Infosolutions Ghana Limited, an entity incorporated under the laws of the Republic of Ghana, participated and won the bid. The Service Provider Subah Infosolutions Ghana Limited per the contract with NATCOM is expected to effectively monitor the quality of service in real time on international voice and data traffic between Sierra Leone and overseas destinations. Subah is also expected to build and operate a non-intrusive telecommunications monitoring platform to monitor and report on all international terminating (incoming) and originating (outgoing) voice and data traffic into and out of the Republic of Sierra Leone respectively, all domestic voice and data traffic within the territory of the Republic of Sierra Leone, including but not limited to traffic to, from and between GSM operators/carriers, Internet service providers and any other organization and/or institution that utilizes VSAT and/or fiber optic cable services. The Chairman of NATCOM Momoh Konke at the signing ceremony said Subahs bid was "the most responsive" in the list of bidders. He explained that the evaluation process was very transparent and accessible. "Management of NATCOM is working very hard with Subah and very soon, we will see the presence of monitoring in the country's communication system." The Executive Chairman of the Jospong Group, of which Subah is a subsidiary Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, who was present at the signing ceremony mentioned that the goal of the ICT firm is to be number one in its sphere of operations in Africa and that gives Subah the motivation not only to do more but also excel. He revealed that the successes chalked in Ghana and Guinea in monitoring such activities which lead to a tremendous increase in revenue for the two countries are enough proof of Subah's capacity and capabilities which the company hopes to successfully deliver outside Ghana. He gave firm assurances that Subah which is a wholly owned Ghanaian company will not only deploy the same business model and technology in developing local capacity in the various African countries where it operates but also technology transfer to them as well. Ps: NATCOM is confident that with the recruitment of Subah Infosolutions Ghana Limited, Simbox fraud would soon be eliminated from Sierra Leone. In line with this tech-savvy Subah is expected to use its sophisticated technology in ensuring anti-telecom fraud such as SIM Box fraud is detected and eliminated to the barest minimum. Subah was adjudged Best Telecom Traffic Monitoring Solution Company of the year at the annual Africa Telecoms, Fraud, and Revenue Assurance & Risk Management Forum 2016 recently organized by Falcon Business Research in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | GN 31.10.2016 LISTEN Embattled High Court Judge, Justice Paul Dery has threatened to petition the Inspector General of Police, Bank of Ghana and the Financial Intelligence Centre to investigate the activities of ace journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas and his Tiger Eye PI firm. Justice Dery argued that because the court has declared Tiger Eye PI as a dummy corporation that is non-existent in the country's laws, it is necessary for them to be investigated and dealt with in accordance of the law if found culpable of fraud. the Supreme Court was very clear in its mind that Anas Aremeyaw Anas breached the fundamental law of the land, the 1992 Constitution of Ghana. Anas Aremeyaw Anas has no respect for the law. He acts as and when he pleases as long as it satisfies his selfish interest. Anas Aremeyaw Anas uses a dummy corporation as a vehicle to perpetuate fraud on the citizens of Ghana and the International community. What Anas Aremeyaw Anas does not want Ghanaians in particular and the whole world in general to know is that the Supreme Court of Ghana by its judgment on Thursday, 27th October, 2016 declared that Tiger Eye PI is not a company registered under the laws of Ghana, he said in a statement. Justice Dery in the statement also alleged fraud against the company and its activities and promised to drag Anas to court pay all monies paid to him by the state for his investigations. Judicial corruption scandal The statement comes on the back of his protracted legal battle with Anas over the method he used for his judicial corruption expose last year. Anas and his team captured Justice Dery and some other judges on video allegedly taking bribes to compromise judgment. Below are excerpts of the statement: Since Anas Aremeyaw Anas has disclosed plans after the judgment of the Supreme Court on 27th October, 2016 to appear before the Committee in his usual hood after the socalled final showdown, I have no problem with that. However, I also want the public to know my intentions. They are as follows: I would file a complaint against Anas Aremeyaw Anas to the Inspector General of Police to investigate the activities of the dummy corporation, Tiger Eye PI. I would file another complaint with the Bank of Ghana and Financial Intelligence Centre to investigate the circumstances under which a dummy corporation, Tiger Eye PI, opened an account with Zenith Bank (Ghana) Ltd. To institute a public interest litigation to recover all monies from Anas Aremeyaw Anas, which he acquired from the government of Ghana by the use of the fraudulent and dummy corporation, Tiger Eye PI as a vehicle in a gargantuan money laundering scheme. To advice the shareholders of all private companies that Anas Aremeyaw Anas defrauded by the use of the dummy corporation, Tiger Eye PI to take steps to recover their monies. 5. To inform all foreign embassies in Ghana that Anas Aremeyaw Anas is a fraudster for he has been using a dummy corporation, Tiger Eye PI, as a vehicle in a money laundering scam. Click here for the full statement: By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana Follow @AlloteyGodwin "....the FTOS-Gh Campaign and all supporters of the movement, including signatories of the petition, among them Ms. Samia Nkrumah, hereby congratulate Mr. Ivor Greenstreet and the CPP for the bold, Ghana-centered position the CPP has taken with respect to Ghana's oil contracts...NDC's 2016 Petroleum...E&P law is at bottom the same NPP concessionary law with royalties and taxes the Mahama government has never been effective in collecting... instead of the NDC government critically reviewing and revising the old NPP according to the latest world standards for sovereign benefit and control,...PSA,...the NDC government merely compounded the problem through inaction and as a result, lost to Ghana over $6 billion....The 2016...law is still predatory because at its core it is based on colonial-era concession regimes long thrown out of the door by all sovereign, independent states...The lesson of history is instructive...This is not about what Jesus would have done...This is simply about what Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana would have done...", (Prof Lungu, 29 October, 2016). We, the Fair-Trade Oil Share Ghana (FTOS-Gh) Campaign and all supporters of the movement, many of whom have already signed the FTOS-Gh petition (https://www.change.org/p/ghana-fair-trade-oil-share-psa-campaign-ftos-gh-psa), hereby congratulate Mr. Ivor Greenstreet and the CPP for the bold, Ghana-centered position the CPP has taken with respect to Ghana's oil contracts. Like most Ghanaians and Ghana supporters in Ghana and all over the world, the FTOS-Gh Campaign/Petition learned over the weekend (29 October) that the Convention Peoples Party (CPP), under Mr. Ivor Greenstreet, has adopted a policy plank against the current system of contracts for Ghana's Oil and Gas that the NDC government, under Mr. Mahama, have continued to foster on Ghanaians to the massive, and unequal, and unfair advantage of the foreign oil companies (among them KOSMOS and Tullow). We, the FTOS-Gh Campaign and all supporters of the movement, including signatories to FTOS-Gh petition, among them Ms. Samia Nkrumah, hereby congratulate Mr. Ivor Greenstreet and the CPP for the bold, Ghana-centered position the CPP has taken with respect to Ghana's oil contracts. Under Mr. Mahama's NDC, the so-called "Ghana Hybrid System" is practically the same fraudulent and predatory law engineered for the benefit of the oil companies that the NPP left for the NDC government nearly 8 years ago. So, all major risks to the oil companies having been mitigated at the Jubilee Oilfield, instead of the NDC government critically reviewing and revising the old NPP oil law according to the latest world standards for sovereign benefit and control, (i.e, Production Sharing Agreement (PSA)), and consistent with the interests of Ghanaians in their oil for development of Ghana, the NDC government merely compounded the problem through inaction. As a result, the NDC lost to Ghana over $6 billion during than last 5 years alone. Then, during the 2nd-3rd quarter of this year (2016), Mr. Mahama's NDC government went further in shame, absent-mindedness, and self-pithy. The NDC government has now passed a version of the NPP law, Ghana Hybrid System, so-called. NDC's 2016 Petroleum Exploration and Production (E&P) law is at bottom the same NPP concessionary law with royalties and taxes the Mahama government has never been effective in collecting in the first place. The 2016 Petroleum E&P law is still predatory because at its core it is based on colonial-era concession regimes long thrown out of the door by all sovereign, independent states with leaders who understand that their country will only develop when they receive a fair-share of their own natural resources and revenues. Today, the lessons of history are instructive with respect to public policy! This is not about what Jesus would have done! Not! No. This is simply about what Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana would have done. We, of the Fair-Trade Oil Share Ghana (FTOS-Gh) Campaign believe that Dr. Kwame Nkruman would never, ever, have signed such a contract on Ghana. Dr. Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana would never have approved for Ghana a predatory law that daily siphons millions of dollars of Ghana's oil revenues into the pockets of foreign oil companies, even as Ghana's children go hungry, attend school under trees, and roads and infrastructure in Ghana, from Accra to Kumasi, to Yeji, to Bolgatanga, remain poor to marginal, at super-unacceptable levels of service (LOS). Congratulations, Ms. Samia Nkrumah, for having the vision, the courage, dedication to duty, and sense of self, for signing the FTOS-Gh Petition many months ago when others merely sat, watched, and some, strongly wished the FTOS-Gh Campaign would simply evaporate into nothingness. Nice suppositions all around, we must say! Congratulations, CPP, for standing up and demanding a fair-share of Ghana's oil resources for all Ghanaians! Way to go, CPP! Way to go, Ghana. NOTES/REFERENCES: Kasapafmonline.com, in Ghanaweb. General News of Saturday, 29 October 2016. CPP will repeal Ghanas Petroleum Law Ivor Greenstreet, (http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/CPP-will-repeal-Ghana-s-Petroleum-Law-Ivor-Greenstreet-481939). Powered by: www.GhanaHero.Com SUBJ: Congrats to CPP for policy to repeal Mahama's predatory oil contract law Twitter: https://twitter.com/professorlungu Support Fair-Trade Oil Share Ghana (FTOS-Gh) Campaign/Petition: https://www.change.org/p/ghana-fair-trade-oil-share-psa-campaign-ftos-gh-psa/ Brought to you courtesy www.GhanaHero.com29 October, 2016. Sixty Community Malaria Ambassadors in some selected Districts in the Upper East Region had been trained under the, Advocacy for Resources for Malaria Stoppage Initiative (ARMS) Project. The one year ARMS Project is being implemented by the Institute for Social Research and Development (ISRAD)- Ghana with funding support from the UKAID in six Districts of the Upper East Regions namely the Bolgatanga, Bongo, Kassena-Nankana West and Kassena-Nankana Municipal , Talensi and the Nabdam. The one day training programme, organized by ISRAD in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service(GHS), saw 10 participants from each of the six beneficiary Districts and they are expected to undertake series of health promotion activities including house to-house sensitization, groups and in-school-programmes and dusk-down sensitization in the communities. Addressing them after the training, the Regional Coordinator of ISRAD- Ghana, Mr Abdul-RazakIssah, told them that as Community Malaria Ambassadors , they were also expected to promote the use of RDTs and use of Long Lasting Insecticide Nets for malaria prevention as well as help mobilize community members to participate in durbars and video shows and support the District Malaria Advocacy Groups for domestic resource mobilization. They were also trained on how to use data tools for reporting the activities of the project. The Regional Coordinator observed that malaria had been identified as one of the major leading causes of morbidity and mortality and yet policy makers were not paying special attention to the disease. He stated that as it stood now as a result of donor fatigue, it was becoming difficult to mobilize funding to tackle the menace hence the need of the stakeholders to brainstorm on how to help mobilize local resources to complement governments and the GHS in tackling the phenomenon. He stated that the ARMS Project had the goal to contribute to the reduction of malaria in the country and also had among its objectives to increase the diagnosis of malaria by treatment, increase local government funding for malaria activities and reduce malaria cases. The respective District Health Promotion Officers, who took the participants through the training, tasked them to be up and doing by disseminating the accurate and reliable health information that could contribute positively to improving the health needs of the people. 31.10.2016 LISTEN I am from the Bole-Bamboi constituency and wish to bring to the attention of the National Media Commission (NMC), the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA), the National Communications Authority (NCA) and Ghanaians in general the culture of silence, media propaganda media terrorism and ethnic incitement through a radio station at Bole called Nkilgi fm set up only this year and operated by a so called journalist by name Haruna Mahama. Radio is supposed to educate, entertain and inform and this is the basic requirement of every radio station. The Bole area where i come from got its first radio station called Yagbon a few years ago and this station has done its best to go by good broadcasting practices since it came in 2013. Even though i have my own problem with Yagbon radio i think they are using good broadcasting standards. My problem with Yagbon radio is that, they mostly broadcast in Asante and Lobi in a Gonja dominated town like Bole which to some of us is not a well thought strategy. I am not surprised presently Yagbon Radio has lost all listeners especially Gonjas. Enter Nkilfgi fm a new radio station which came we are told because of the effort of Haruna Mahama and which is rumored to be owned by President John Mahama. It must be noted that President Mahama denied ownership of Nkilgi fm during an interview on the same station when he visited Bole at the period of the voter exhibition exercise but as to why the station is located at President Mahama's fathers house has a big question mark. Nkilgi fm was smart by broadcasting in only Gonja and little English, a situation Yagbon radio could not exploit. When the radio station was set up Haruna Mahama explained- "NKILGI FM will mostly broadcast its programmes in the local languages of the people of its catchment area to enhance listenership; to bridge the literate and illiterate gap in the area and to get everybody involved in the process of development in the area and Ghana as a whole". That has worked for him. Nkilgi has also used sensationalism thereby hoodwinking the people to listen to Nkilgi fm especially the morning show. It is true that Nkilgi has taken over the airwaves of Bole but is the station serving everybody? The answer is a big no!!!! Nkilgi is a radio station where journalistic objectivity meets its limits. There is simply is no fairness in presenting both sides of a story because one side is consistently rubbished. Nkilgi has consistently broadcast hit piece after hit piece in an all-out attempt to destroy NPP. They are constantly spewing an endless stream of anti-NPP propaganda. In fact, it has been realized that Nkilgi has spent literally half the time of their early morning show on anti-NPP stories. Nkilgi is desperate to keep President Mahama in office and if that means shedding all notions of media objectivity and siccing NDC attack dogs on NPP and Nana Akuffo-Addo day after day, then that is precisely what they are going to do. Nkilgi was set up for political or ideological reasons. Before Nkilgi fm made its first broadcast Haruna Mahama said; "NKILGI FM will seek to promote good governance using the power of Radio as a mass medium of communication..... He said NKILGI FM aims at community sensitisation and awareness creation on major social, economic and political issues geared towards improving quality of life of the people as well as increase their interest and effective participation in decision making process". Many therefore expected Haruna Mahama who is a mercenary journalist and a good propagandist writer to use this new radio station as the manager do what he promised to use it for and to promote unity. But that is not the case. It is clear Haruna Mahama is using the radio station to engage in media terrorism at Bole. Media Terrorism is the use of fear, of real or fancied events to intimidate and coerce the masses to act; generally to consume and take away people's ability to think for themselves. Nkilgi fm is being used to intimidate or coerce the people of Bole to think in a particular way. Haruna Mahama has used Nkilgi fm to poke, prod and coerce the people into fear. Now in Bole people are so careful and silent. I have realized that no one wants to become a subject of discussion on the almighty Nkilgi fm. Many people in Bole have been cowed into submission a situation that do not augur well for freedom of expression and democratic environment. Haruna Mahama sit in his nice air- conditioned office at Accra and spew out everything for Nkilgi fm aimed at brainwashing people. If Nkilgi fm was neutral, why wouldn't they invite NPP members during their shows and why should they banned all NPP supporters from appearing on any program on the radio station. When one tunes in to Nkilgi he is greeted with news and political propaganda on President Mahama and his government. Any information on President Mahama is transmitted quickly. Nkilgi is a radio station where journalistic objectivity meets its limits. There is simply is no fairness in presenting both sides of a story when one side is consistently rubbished. Nkilgi has consistently broadcast hit piece after hit piece in an all-out attempt to destroy people perceived as opponents. They are constantly spewing an endless stream of anti-NPP propaganda. In fact, it has been realized that Nkilgi has spent literally half the time of their early morning show on anti-NPP stories. Nkilgi is desperate to keep President Mahama in office and if that means shedding all notions of media objectivity and siccing NDC attack dogs on NPP and Nana Akuffo-Addo day after day, then that is precisely what they are going to do. Radio propaganda is propaganda aimed at influencing attitudes towards a certain cause or position, delivered through radio broadcast. Through radio, a propagandist can bring his voice and all the persuasive power of his emotions to thousands of people. That is the approach of Nkilgi fm which has so far used radio propaganda. Aside from convincing those at Bole of the necessity of a John Mahama second term it has also used a different kind of propaganda directed towards the opponents of the President's party at Bole. Nkilgi fm has become a conduit in which who ever disagrees with Haruna Mahama's political principles, his political ideologies and his godfather (President John Mahama) becomes a subject of discussion on the station. Haruna Mahama is using Nkilgi fm to run the names of people through the mud! So far i can count about five personalities including four prominent NPP figures who have become victims of Haruna Mahama's media terrorism. These are a few examples of the terrorist acts of Haruna Mahama and his Nkikgi fm: 1). The Bole District Director of the Ghana Education (GES), Madam Zakpela was accused of tribalism, cronyism and corruption in an article by a phantom name. Nkilgi fm made this a topic for discussion and never presented the side of the woman. The Director was not only accused of tribalism but corruption with the allegation that the Director recruited her daughter and her daughters boyfriend into the Ghana Education service and they took salaries as staffs of Bole Senior High School for a year without authorities of the school knowing them.The story said some concern natives of Bole have vowed never to see a Dagarti occupying the position of GES Director for Bole District "because of the bad footprints madam is leaving behind" and this issue has irked Dagartis in Bole who have served Bole for many years and who have mostly supported the NDC. 2). Another case is that of Harisu Abudulai, an NPP activist wrote on his Facebook that Prex- doe a former NPP man defected because he was involved in a stealing case. Harisu used the term "a crab does not give birth to a snake" to refer Prex- doe's behavior not different from Haruna Mahama. But Nkilgi Fm pounced on this and interpreted it as Harisu insulting the father of Prex-doe who is a big chief in Bole. Nkilgi fm whipped up the family of Prex-doe against the young man with all sorts of threats being issue and he had to write another Facebook post to retract the statement. 3). A Driver, Vehicle and Licensing Authority (DVLA ) office is to be built at Bole and no any other place was earmarked than land for one Mr Alex Abudulai and his family. Nkilgi fm tried to whip up the people of Bole against Mr Alex for protecting their land. They cornered Mr Alex in an interview but he showed them that he is also a media man. Mr Alex explained that the said land belongs to his family and was able to explain himself well stating that they are not prepared to relinquish the land advising that the DVLA offices can be sent to the outskirts of Bole and that could help expand Bole town. That ended the matter. 4). Alhaji Sulemana Masa a nephew of Bolewura was sent to invite the morning show host of Nkilgi Fm for a friendly discussion over an issue of a conflict at a village that Nkilgi fm discussed. Nkilgi fm turned the heat on this man describing him as "NPP founding member" who went to the offices of Nkilgi fm at Bole with a message that the Bolewura has summoned the morning show host of Nkilgi Fm. The Bolewura's palace had to rescind their decision a situation many said was embarrassing to the Bolewura's palace. 5). The NPP Chairman for Bole- Bamboi Sulemana Zack went to the office of micro finance company Sinapi Aba where he transacts business and jokingly told an NDC communicator that they will burn Nkilgi fm where they sit to insult Nana Akufo-Addo, the NPP candidate. Haruna Mahama made this story one of the biggest in the country on that day. He called into Nkilgi fm and said all sorts of things against the NPP Chairman describing him as intolerable, erratic and violent. Haruna Mahama wrote a few weeks ago; "contrary to perceptions, Nkilgi FM is being used responsibly to educate, inform and entertain the people of its coverage area. The station do not insult people and do not preach hate speech". But i disagree. I remember the late Albert Nuhu cautioned against Haruna Mahama's cyber bullying tactics after saying unpalatable things about his father of which some of us were against. He wrote; "There is something called cyber bullying, and you all know what it is. You may all wonder what ticked me off to expose this guy called Haruna Mahama. Folks, he was trying to use the internet to silence people from expressing their opinions and making choices'. For the same Haruna Mahama to operate a radio station is something many are complaining about. Haruna Mahama sees himself as the spokesman of Bole if not the entire Gonja area with unrestrained powers to do as he wants when he wants. Nonetheless, not all of his actions can be tolerated in our current Ghana where Constitutional Laws and the practice of democratic dispensation and freedom of speech are fully operational to guarantee the citizenry their fundamental human rights. We are still observing. Kipo Gbolo Langa Sudanese foreign minister Ibrahim Ghandour has denied his government used chemical weapons against its citizens, dismissing allegations as a joke. In October 2016, Amnesty called for an international investigation into dozens of suspected chemical weapons attacks against civilian populations over the past nine months in Jebel Marra, citing credible evidence of horrific injuries and estimates of up to 250 deaths. Speaking to Talk To Al Jazeeras James Bays this weekend, Ghandour said, We dont use chemical weapons against our citizens. If that has ever happened, it is very easy to tell Those organisations are looking for finance. Ghandour similarly dismissed claims that Sudan has cluster munitions; that politicians involved in the National Dialogue had been harassed or arrested; that journalists are being jailed; or that there are 2.6m displaced people in Sudan. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Sudanese president Omar Al Bashir in 2009 for alleged war crimes. He was also the first person to be charged by the ICC for genocide. But Bashir is now traveling widely across Africa and to India, seemingly unconcerned by the threat of arrest. Ghandour said Bashir will never appear before the ICC, because Sudan did not ratify the Rome Treaty and because of the hypocrisy of the UN Security Council being able to refer non-signatory countries to the ICC, while retaining veto power for the US, Russia and China to protect themselves. Not a single Sudanese will go to the ICC Court, Ghandour said. That was a political accusation. We know the ICC is a political organ of the EU. This is a court that has been formed and built to indict Africans. This is why you find all those leaders who have been accused and indicted are African leaders, while we see crimes everywhere and no one is indicted. Ghandour claimed, There is peace right now in Darfur and called for the implementation of an exit strategy for the UN peacekeeping force there, UNIMAD. The UN spends on UNIMAD annually $1.3 billion. If that was given to the government of Sudan, it could have changed the whole of Darfur into not only a peaceful settlement but abolished the reason of the fight, which is drought. There are other areas in the world that need peacekeepers, he said. When asked about the imminent end to the ceasefire in South Kordofan and the Blue Nile, he said, We are much closer than ever and we hope that this will end the conflict in the two areas We believe there is no solution but a political solution. He said the fact that 75% of South Sudans more than a million refugees are in Sudan is a sign of how stable his country is. The areas we are talking about are on our border with South Sudan and no one will move from an area where there is a fight to an area that is insecure. He expressed his concern over the recent unrest in South Sudan. We are very much worried because we believe that there is no peace in Sudan without peace in South Sudan and vice versa, he added. Whatever happens in South Sudan will affect us directly. He criticized those who had pushed for South Sudans independence, saying Sudan had warned them the separation of South Sudan may be a premature decision. But while he said, This is now going on the wrong path, he also expressed confidence that we are quite sure that our brothers in the South can do better with the help of everyone in the region. Sudan is sheltering South Sudans former vice president Riek Machar, but Ghandour denied they were supporting him. Machar is in Khartoum for treatment and he is leaving Khartoum very soon. Khartoum will not be used as a springboard for any military action against the government of South Sudan. He ended the interview expressing his optimism about Sudans future. If a country was capable to stop the longest war in Africa, we are capable of reaching a final peace. We are much nearer than many expect. We are on the shores of a peaceful settlement for everything in Sudan. I can see a better future for the coming generation. Watch the full 25-minute interview: For more information, visit http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/talktojazeera/2016/10/sudan-fm-icc-court-built-indict-africans-161027112211288.html. Theres an African proverb which goes: If the owner of the land leads you, you cannot get lost. Between November 7 and 18, over 195 countries and parties of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will convene at Marrakech, Morocco, in West Africa for a two week conference following the ratification of Paris COP21 climate agreement. Last year, during the adoption of historic climate change agreement, it was time for Europeto prove to the world her seriousness in overcoming greenhouse gas emissions. This years COP of action as COP22 President, Salaheddine Mezouar, says on 6 October during the ratification of the Paris agreement, is time for Africa to prove not only her ability gathering over 195 countries, but also show leadership in voicing out her concerns. One of the biggest outcries of the African continent about the delegation of UNFCCC conferences has been that we have been historically sidelined during such moments of decisions. What this means cannot be over stated. African climate change experts stressed that the Paris Agreement adopted on the 21st conference of parties (COP21) to the UNFCCC held from the November 30 to December 11in France failed to give the issue of agriculture the attention it deserves. Throughout the negotiation, we toiled trying to introduce agriculture so that it is mainstreamed in the negotiation text but with little success said Estherine Fotabong, the Director of Programme Implementation and Coordination for the New Partnership for Africas Development. Considering the important role of Agriculture in the development of Africa, lack of attention given to the sector was quite worrisome. Agriculture, not energy nor manufacturing, is an engine of most African countries. According to the African Union, agriculture account for more than one-third of the continents gross domestic product and more than two-thirds of us rely directly on the sector for our livelihood. If Africas biggest problem was renewable energy finance or something like that, then Africa got what it wanted in Paris. In one major success, the European Union, Sweden and G7 jointly pledged $10 billion to the newly-minted African Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI), whose goal is to supply at least 300GW of power by 2030 through clean energy sources. Even more pledges were undeniably secured; African delegations seemed to go quiet at the summit. The room was left to civil society to demand more robust positions on compensation for climate damage, and deeper cuts on emissions by industrialized countries. One of the big voices that echoed a clear climate change situation of African continent, that wasnt adequately tackled, said: The cry from the climate impacted people of Africa, especially women, children and smallholder farmers, is on the rise. The cries also indicate that they are losing their farmlands and animals to floods and drought, says Mithika Mwenda, Secretary-General of PACJA, a civil society umbrella body. Representing some of the countries including Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan, Uganda already hit hardest by the worst draught in 60 years, PACJAs tumult was that African countries, some of those being the most affected by climate change, need no less than $50billion per year for adaptation along with no more than 1.5 degrees of warming. If we first admit the fact that Africa is generally a developing land, with low fossil-fuel CO2 emissions in both absolute and per capita terms: we released a mere 1, 12.59 million tonnes of CO2 in to the sky out of the entire 30,398.42 million tonnes of CO2 released by the whole world, according to World carbon dioxide emissions data by country published in The guardian: world emissions by countries 2011, we can also come clean that Europe and Asia led the world causing the global warming Africa is being, so to say, by the same token charged upon. The forthcoming Marrakech meeting is the right turn for the big polluters to help Africa find her footing by finding their own. Our most urgent plight is unique, and so we ought to steer right to our cause on the course to achieving 1.5 degree global temperature limit. Africa must lead this time, going to, and during Moroccosoliciting funds for agricultural loss compensation to cut hunger and starvation as one visible impact of climate change. By Boaz Opio On behalf the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Commissioner, H.E. Ambassador Smail Chergui, the AU Liaison Office in NDjamena, handed over 15 different vehicles, 30 motor cycles and 8 different electrical generators to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram terrorist group. These items were procured using the United Kingdoms (UK) fund donated to the AU Peace Facility to augment the efforts of the Troop Contributing Countries of the MNJTF. This support is the first batch of a support package while procurement of other is ongoing. The support is aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of the MNJTF operations. Following heavy clashes that erupted between armed forces of Galmudug and Puntland in Galkayo town, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Somali Red Crescent Society (SRCS) have distributed rice, beans and vegetable oil for up to 60,000 displaced people. Some 34,000 people those with the greatest needs -- received mosquito nets, tarpaulins, kitchen sets, basins, jerry cans and hygiene parcels provided. That is the ICRC's biggest emergency response carried out in the country this year. The food assistance is expected to last one month amid hopes that the situation stabilizes. In addition temporary water distribution points were established and water trucking was provided. A Somali Red Crescent Society mobile clinic provided medical services to displaced families. Immediately after the clash medical supplies were donated to a hospital that received two dozen people wounded in the fighting. The ICRC spoke with the parties of the conflict to negotiate the humanitarian access. The heavy clashes that broke out in the northern part of the country on October 7 killed 11 people and injured dozens. An ICRC assessment estimates that over 90 percent of Galkayo's residents were displaced to nearby villages or moved to the outskirts of town. The displacements continue as tensions between the sides remain. The mass displacement comes barely a year after violence erupted in the same area in December 2015, killing 21 people and forcing 70,000 to flee. The ICRC emergency humanitarian response in 2016 includes medical supplies to 18 hospitals and clinics for treating 4,000 wounded people; one month of food rations for 161,000 people; and household items to 90,000 people. Emergency water supply has been provided to 82,000 people. Accra - Ghana, October 26, 2016 - Tigo has appointed Amir Abdelazim as the new Chief Technology and Information Officer (CTIO). He will be responsible for managing all of Tigos network operations to ensure the delivery of a modern, robust and resilient network that provides the best internet and voice experience for customers. Amir joins Tigo Ghana from Tigo Rwanda where he had been the CTIO since 2015. Prior to that, he was Tigo Tanzania's Strategic Quality Director and won Best Improved Network in Africa at the 2013 AfricaCom Awards held in Cape Town. He later moved on to manage the Strategic Quality team in Millicom Africa operations. Commenting on Mr. Abdelazims appointment, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Tigo Ghana, Roshi Motman said: Our primary focus continues to be building a world class network that supports the needs of customers, both enterprise and consumers segments. With Amirs considerable experience and commitment to network quality, I am confident we will be able to meet and exceed the expectations of our customers. Customer satisfaction and experience will be my primary focus as the business accelerates and consolidates on all the gains made particularly within the last two years. The team has already done a fantastic job on the network with multiple million dollar investments to ensure continuous service availability, added Mr. Abdelazim. Amir holds a BSc. in Communication and Electronics. He is a Certified Project Management Professional and holds an MBA in International Business and Executive Education from the London Business School. 31.10.2016 LISTEN Since the day I could think for myself for my 24 years on earth, I have been wondering why Africa, Ghana, northerners, Tamale and Dagbon are not thriving as expected. Upon all those sleepless nights and days, I could only come to these conclusions, I maybe wrong but these are just my opinions. Africa has given birth to a lot of great men and women like Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela, Muhammar Al-Gaddafi, Miriam Makiba, Winnie Mandela, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Thomas Sankara and Julius Nyerere, yet Africa is still struggling, indebted, swimming in unemployment and in political crisis and war. What went wrong or did we start on the wrong foot all along? What is it that our colonial masters did that we are not doing or cannot do? Upon all the sacrifices made by the leaders mentioned, Africa is still economically, emotionally and socially dependent on the developed world. I always wonder what would happen to Africa if europeans are to come to live in Africa and Africans in Europe for the next 10 years. I have come to certain conclusions that as Africans, most of us are not appreciative and do not value our own people and things. We trash and betray our own people. Oneness, togetherness and selflessness are just terms and words in our vocabulary but we do not actually understand the meaning of those words, we do not walk and live the words. Africans value I to We and the thriving world value We to I, and that makes the difference, depending on which word citizens put first. Resources meant for all are consumed by the top few leaving the rest penniless and vulnerable ready to do the biddings of the powerful to survive. Politicians would do anything to become Mr or Madam President, for they understand the power they would have to do whatever they want and not what is needed by the citizenry. Politicians mislead and use the very people they made poor to cause riots for few coins to survive. African leaders can do better than this, they should walk the change they always preach. Resources should be distributed fairly. Do we not have enough resources to lead our development activities? We need our leaders of today to stop thinking about themselves and their families only and think of Africa as a continent too. They need to see citizens as family, that is they need to look at citizens as their sons, daughters, mothers, uncles, aunts, nieces, nephews and grandparents. They need to be able to feel how it is like to not be able to provide the basic needs for your family members including shelter, clothing, education, food and health. They need to be empathetic as leaders. However, our leaders are not the only people who need to change. As citizens of Africa, we need to respect, appreciate and value our continent and leaders we chose to lead us. We need to choose our leaders wisely based on ideologies and capabilities. Voting based on money and materials received shows how little we value ourselves and the continent. It makes us no different from the leaders for we are all thinking of ourselves instead of the continent or the country in which we live. Can Africans put Africa first for once instead of our individual selfish interests. It is not possible for all Africans to go and live in Europe but it is possible for us to create Europe in Africa to live in by being selfless and put the needs of Africa first. We are in a world of exploitation. Where leaders exploit followers from the grassroots to the top management in most organisations. People pretend to be humanist and exploit others, they pretend to have the interest of their subordinates always and at all times yet their actions show otherwise. They speak and act differently. Most people enjoy seeing others being desperate, they do not want to help others grow and only pretend to be supportive to be seen as different. Deep down we know we are only deceiving ourselves, it is not easy to live a double life. If you cannot help someone do not throw him/her in a hole either, let them be. As ordinary citizens we blame politicians yet are irresponsible. Workers do not go to work on time and close early too and others do not even show up at work at all. We expect favours to do our paid jobs again!!! and yet we blame others. Let us start the change within ourselves. Let us perform our responsibilities well and see where Africa will be in the next 10 to 20 years. I know there are still good and selfless leaders and citizens in Africa but they cannot do much alone, all of us are needed to form a united front. All I am trying to say is that, we are all responsible for the Africa we have today, from the bottom to the top, that is from the ordinary citizen to the president. We need to put Africa first in all that we do. We need to be empathetic and real to others. We need to have the spirit to lift each other up anytime we fall. We need to be responsible, value and respect time. We need to love each other like we love ourselves. We need to be reminded that there is only one Africa, one Ghana, one north in Ghana, one Tamale and one Dagbon. If we loose the peace, harmony and unity, we have lost everything and will never get it back as same. Let us be mindful of our actions. Let us respect the right to life and other rights and entitlement of others. Let us respect each others opinions and develop the will to wish others well. Everyone has the capacity to be good or evil, let us choose the good in us over the evil. I will always choose Africa, Ghana, north, Tamale and Dagbon anytime any day, what about you. Let us value who we are as a people and live peacefully. For we are one people irrespective of our opinions, location, height, status, education, religion, tribe and all the things that differentiate us from others, we are simply humans with the desire to live life to its fullest. The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) may have attempted to put both President John Dramani Mahama and the flagbearer of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo on the same platform to debate, but this move have been rejected by the two parties. The IEA last Friday, have published on its website the information below: IEA 2016 PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES DATES The IEA is pleased to announce that the 2016 Presidential Debates will be held on the following dates: 1. First Presidential Debate Tamale 8th November 2016 2. Vice Presidential Debate Takoradi 15th November 2016 3. Second Presidential Debate Accra 22nd November 2016 But the Deputy General Secretary of the NDC Koku Anyidoho who was speaking on Onua Fms morning show on Monday said NDC will not participate in any debate organize by the IEA, and am repeating it, we will not participate, let the IEA gets it clear The NDC scribe reiterated that the President is ever ready to debate the flag bearer of the main opposition NPP but that will only happen on the platform of National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE). We are ready to debate Nana Addo but that will only be on a credible platform like the NCCE and those that are organized by the national broadcaster Koku Anyidoho asserted. The NDC Deputy General Secretary insisted that the party once again, has not been informed about the latest arrangement, adding that it is a confirmation of the disrespect the IEA has for the NDC and the President. Meanwhile, the NPP has also joined the NDC to reject the IEAs latest announcement. Speaking to Bright Kwesi Asempa on Onua Fms morning show Yen Sem Pa, Deputy Communications Director who doubles as the Parliamentary Candidate for Lawra Anthony Karbo noted that the work of the partys flag bearer is on the field. Saying it will be better for the party to get closer to the electorates and explains its policies to them than being on Television. Asempa, let us tell Ghanaians what we have for them than media debate. Nana will not go to any debate; if President Mahama wants to debate he should debate with Ghanaians. Take it from me Nana will not honor IEA debate the Deputy General Secretary said. The 7th December,2016 electioneering campaign is on, and over the weekend, the NPP campaign train made stops on Ablekuma Central, specifically on Saturday,29th October, 2016. The train first paid a courtesy call on chief imam at his Darkuman residence, where Nana Addo receive blessings from the eminent cleric. The train then moved to Darkuman-Kokompe area where, a couple of days earlier, John Mahama visited and was openly welcomed with shouts of WE WANT CHANGE by disappointed Ghanaians. But during Nana Addos visit to this enclave of spare parts dealers, a trip of about 1.5km from the Lapaz end of Darkuman road to the main Odorkor-Kaneshie end, took the entourage close to 3hours. Throughout the stretch, Nana Addo was on his feet acknowledging cheers form the massive crowds that lined both sides of the road, with some of them desperate to breach the security cordon around Nana Addos convoy, just to touch him. Others openly shed tears of joy for catching glimpse of him. Taxi/trotro drivers jumped out of their cars, jumped into the front of Nana Addos vehicle, openly expressed how difficult times have become and proclaimed how determined they are to massively vote for NPP. The train then proceeded to Kaneshie market through the main Odorkor-Kaneshie highway, and that was the first time that broad arterial road was brought to a standstill. From Darkuamn junction to the main Kaneshie market, a distance of not more than 2km, which normally takes not more than 5minutes to cover, actually took the entourage close to 2hours, with drivers and passengers actually getting out of their cars to cheer Nana Addo. The train then moved to town council line through Kaneshie-first-light and Zongo junction; all along this stretch too, there was massive presence of cheering crowds who visibly are yearning for change, after 8years of socioeconomic deprivation under the incompetent John Mahama-led NDC administration. On Sunday,30th October,2016, the train visited the chiefs and people of Kpone-Katamanso, where Nana Addo was warmly received, after which a mini rally was held. The train then moved to the Akojo Park at Tema community 1; and that was where a crowd of unimaginable monstrosity was recorded.at this rally, Nana Addo was passionate in his speech, forthright with his vision and frontal with lies being peddled about him. Nana Addo lamented about how Ghanaians have been rendered poor by incompetent leadership, eventhough Ghana is blessed with enormous wealth of both natural and human resources. He provided a great deal of insight into his vision for Ghana, where premium will be placed on providing enabling environment for Ghanaians to thrive in their various fields of talents and capabilities. Senseless lies On the issue of lies being perpetrated against him by his detractors, Nana Addo told a story of what happened on his recent visit to the western region; he had finished addressing a rally and had gone to sit in his car, when a gentleman approached his car and took a closer look at him. The gentlemen went away, but returned a second time, took a critical look at Nana Addo, and this time, asked are you Nana Akufo-Addo, and nana responded in the affirmative. The gentleman then said; oooh, Ghanafo paaaa, you are a very fit and handsome-looking man and people come to tell us you are a cripple? Nana Addo asked the people to disregard lies being peddled about him by his detractors, and rather be concerned about how the NDC government has destroyed Ghanas economy through incompetence and looting of state coffers, vote them out on 7th December,2016, and vote massively for the NPP because the NPP government under my presidency will ensure the judicious use of our resources, and corruption will be vigorously fought. The 8year convention Now, since the inception of our Fourth Republican dispensation, no political party had governed for consecutive three terms in office. This then cements this convention of Ghanaians settling on changing a government, after every 8years.as a matter of fact, the 8years of NPP, which saw Ghana being awashed with numerous social intervention policies that directly impacted, positively, on the lives of greater mass of our people, should have, unquestionably, be given a third term of office to continue the excellent works. The 8years of NPP, which actually inherited the shameful legacy of HIPC from the defeated NDC in the year 2000, was able to turn things around through competence and prudence use of our resources, and elevated our shattered and hopeless economic outlook at the time, to that of a lower middle income. After over a century of oil exploration, Ghana never saw a teaspoon of the commodity. Under the 19 uninterrupted years Ghana was under the mismagament of P[NDC], colossal amounts of resources were pumped into looking for this commodity, but instead of those at the helm of affairs being focused in their duties, they rather diverted into investing our nations resources meant for looking for this precious commodity, into ventures like salt weaning. But what was seen as a joke when Kufuor, as the presidential candidate of NPP in the year 2000 promised that Ghana will strike oil in commercial quantities under NPP administration, rather turned out to be the gospel. I was not in the country at the time, but I can confidently deduce that elements of then NDC government, as usual, claimed it was not doable. In much the same vein, genuine achievable policy alternatives being proffered by Nana Addo, on his campaign tours, are being described as unrealistic by these NDC Pharisees; and I call them Pharisees because they always see things from afar. Realism, pragmatism and forthrightness are nonexistent commodities in the circles of NDC. The is populated by elements who lack vision and drive to make Ghana prosperous. Their preoccupation has always centered on their personal welfare, with the well-being of the greater mass completely relegated to the background. The point therefore is; a government that will earn the approval of Ghanaians for a third term in office, consecutively, would have to be one that has been visibly spectacular in delivery to significantly uplift them from poverty and want, into the state of demonstrable seriocomic pedestal. And with evidence on the ground, the John Mahama-led NDC government comes nowhere near the mark, and therefore destined for the dustbin of political wilderness, come 7th December,2016. 30years of P[NDC] disaster Sometimes I do get a bit disappointed when Ghanaians express surprise at such reckless pronouncements by NDC elements, and are taken aback by their pipe-dream tendencies. The point is, out of our 59years of independent statehood, the NDC and its antecedents have had nearly 30years to govern.so if these people have anything useful to contribute to the seriocomic advancements for Ghana, this would have been visibly demonstrable. The 19years these people governed Ghana, actually ended in a HIPC debacle. Similarly, the 8years of their second coming has equally witnessed unimaginable levels of crushing poverty in our dear nation. Corruption in political officialdom is given presidential seal, while incompetence and mediocrity have been elevated to greater heights. Contract figures are padded to unimaginable levels, with obscene opulence and objectionable arrogance of power actually taking the center stage. Under the current NDC administration, those who fall foul of the law though palpable stealing of taxpayers monies, are rather rewarded with cozy appointments at the presidency. Fearing their shadows Now, these acts of naked looting and crass incompetence is what Nana Addo is bent on putting a stop to, under his presidency. Indeed, these NDC people are very much aware of the fact that Nana Addo is not corrupt and therefore his determination to fighting such retrogressive social canker, is for real. This therefore is what is sending shivers of fear down the spines of these NDC elements, due to their monumental socioeconomic crimes, which most of them have openly confessed to, and have attempted to seek refuge under senseless ethnocentric bigotry by asking their tribesmen to vote for NDC, else, they will be thrown into jail under NPP administration. The question is; can any government throw innocent citizen into jail? I was part of Nana Addos team on these tours, and from what I witnessed, it is pretty obvious the nation is deeply immersed in a tsunami of CHANGE. Indeed, Ghana is at the cross-roads, as we go into election-2016, and as good people of Ghana, desirous of having better lives and pursue happiness in the atmosphere of freedom, which is of-course an inalienable right, we must rise and take our destinies into our own hands. This is a noble call to national redemption, with an expressed purpose of pulling our dear nation from the brink of socioeconomic apocalypse. We must make a decision to depart from our current state of unacceptable depravity, vote for the visionary and incorruptible leader, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who has the vision, drive and patriotism to serve Ghana for the benefit of all, and certainly not an infinitesimal cabal of family/friends, as happening under the current NDC government. Justice Abeeku Newton-Offei E-mail: [email protected] The Presidential candidate of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP), Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom says there is nothing to be gained by the Electoral Commission if it decides to appeal against a court order overturning his disqualification. "I don't know what they will gain by doing so", he said while welcoming the Commission's right to appeal just as it was in his right to sue the EC. The Commission has not ruled out an appeal against the High Court decision last Friday ordering the EC to allow Dr. Nduom to correct errors that formed the basis of his disqualification from the 2016 presidential elections. Dr. Nduom told Joy FM's Super Morning Show Monday he expects his legal team to meet with the Electoral Commission to determine how to enforce the order. He said the PPP has carefully thought through the steps it has to take to amend the mistakes and therefore does not expect any problems with the EC concerning his nomination papers. Photo: Chairperson of the Electoral Commission Charlotte Osei and PPP flagbearer Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom While Nduom has prevailed in court against the EC, his troubles are not yet over. There are two pending investigations into allegations that one signature on his nomination forms was forged and another demanding that he reveals the source of his campaign funds. He said he has given a statement to the police after they contacted him over the forgery allegations made by the Electoral Commission. "I have a clear mind, a clean heart, there is nothing that I want to hide from anybody", he pleaded his innocence. He said he is not taking the allegations from the EC lightly because it is an attempt to soil his reputation. As a businessman with huge business interests in Africa, Europe and the US, it is imperative for him to defend his integrity, he said. "I have worked too hard in my life to sit there to have anybody go and impugn my character, my behaviour and my being", he stressed. Dr. Nduom who has been asked by the state to explain his sources of campaign funds also dismissed the investigations into the matter. The politician paid GH1,750,000 as filing fees for himself and the parliamentary candidates of the PPP. In a letter from the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), it said it had taken up investigations on the authority of the Auditor-General. "What is the Auditor-General's business in my private affairs?" he said. He said questions about his source of campaign funds should be a matter of interest for the Electoral Commission and not the Auditor-General or EOCO. "What I do in politics is governed by the Political Parties Act [and] it gives authority to the Electoral Commission to be interested in how the PPP funds the party," Dr. Nduom observed. He said in every election he has participated in, he has submitted a statement on how he funds his campaigns six months after the elections in accordance with the law. He promised to comply with the law after the 2016 elections. "So what's the beef of EOCO?" Listen to audio